Pretend for Me
by Satashi
Summary: Sayaka needs someone to get her family off her back about dating. Being put on the spot, she blurts out that she's dating Yuu. Now the two are awkwardly shoved together on a trip to a ski resort to meet Sayaka's family and convince them that they are in love. Romantic comedy, lots of fluff, and a budding love for each other found through their mishaps.
1. Chapter 1

I couldn't believe what was happening to me. My parents had called me to meet them at a nice restaurant on my way home from school, one of the most expensive ones nearby. At first I was wondering if I missed some important date, but no matter how hard I thought, nothing came to mind. Now though, I knew what was going on. Sitting in a private room in a five-star restaurant, in front of a man in a suit, while wearing my schoolgirl uniform. Introductions were made and before I could even utter a word, I was left alone with a person I didn't even know, but seemed to know me. No matter how you looked at it... This was a marriage interview.

**Pretend for Me**

**By:**

**Satashi**

"Sayaka, you should have given the boy a chance," Sayaka's mother scolded her daughter while they rode in their car. "He is the son of a really wealthy family, and we've known them for years."

"I didn't know them," Sayaka replied softly, looking at the floor of the car. "I wish you would have given me some notice."

"You would have tried to talk out of it," her dad instantly spoke up, disapproval clear on his tone. "You're the perfect age to find a husband and settle down after school ends."

"I want to go to college," the daughter instantly replied. "I want to get a job, live my life, be my own person."

Before more protests were made, a gentle voice broke through the clutter to speak out. "Now now, she's still young." Sayaka's grandmother smiled at the child with shining emerald eyes despite her old body looking weak and worn down from her years. "Whatever happened to that nice girl you met in junior high?"

Sayaka looked away, not wanting to relive those memories at the moment. Still, she couldn't turn down the escape she had been given. "It turns out she didn't really like girls..." In the past, she had just said that they had broken up on mutual terms, but she couldn't bring it to herself to lie to her grandmother.

"That's what I've been saying," the mother spoke again. "You don't need a wife; you need a husband. What about children?"

"Mom, adoption is always an option."

A sigh. "But I want my own grandkids..."

"Sayaka." the girl turned to her father. "You know what we talked about. If you couldn't find someone, you agreed to let us help."

"But I do have someone!" The words came without realizing it. Instantly everyone looked at her, curiosity hanging thick in the air. "I mean... I..."

"Why didn't you tell us!?" Her mother scolded.

"You see, I..."

The car slowed down and a voice came through a small intercom next to the black window that separated them from their driver. "We have arrived at the bookstore, as requested."

Instantly, Sayaka opened the door and got out so she could help her grandmother step down from the car. "This bookstore is the one you wanted...?" Sayaka whispered the words to herself. The familiar Fujishiro bookstore was right next to them, and a pleased confirmation came from her grandmother. _'I thought this kind of coincidence happened in books and movies...'_ Her mind trailed as she walked next to her grandmother.

Upon entering the store, a familiar voice greeted them. "Welcome!" A sudden happy sound came next and Sayaka turned to see Yuu standing up from behind the counter. "Gran-gran!"

"Oh, hello there Dearie," The older woman smiled and stepped forward to greet the young girl. "Could you help me find a few books I've been wanting?"

"Of course!" Yuu smiled and nodded, just then noticing her friend. "Ah, hello Senpai."

Sayaka was confused, slowly pointing at both of them. "You two... know each other?"

"She's one of our best customers and has been coming here since I was really little." Yuu accepted the list given to her so she could scan it with her eyes.

"I've known Yuu-chan since she came up to my knee," a gentle voice spoke, lost in memories for a moment in time.

"I think we have all of these... But Senpai? How do you know Gran-gran?"

"She's my actual grandmother." The green-eyed girl simply smiled, relaxing a little from the casual talk and the warm atmosphere of the bookstore. The sight before her made her happy. Ever since she could remember, her grandmother was there for her. Making sure she had someone to eat with when her parents were gone for days on end, ensuring she had someone with her on parent's day, and doing all that was possible to let her live a comfortable life to her own desires.

Deciding to just follow the two, Sayaka listened in on the pair chatting away happily. "So then, the play was a huge success," Yuu was chattering while plucking a book from the shelf. "I was nervous, but everything turned out okay. Saeki-senpai was amazing as well, she really brought it all together."

"She does that," the older woman just smiled as she thought aloud. "Always bringing a smile to those around her. Sayaka is a good child, if not a little forward thinking."

"Granny!" Sayaka protested the compliment, cheeks blushing.

With a happy tone, she continued to walk with Yuu while the younger girl looked for what she needed. "We were hoping to have her bring someone with her over the winter break. You see, we're all flying to one of my son's resorts for a family get-together this year." Yuu hummed curiously to try and get some more information. "But Sayaka suddenly said that she had someone, after we already made a marriage interview for her! Can you believe hiding something like that?"

Yuu looked at her friend, seeing the fear and embarrassment clearly on her face. "Senpai gets really shy sometimes," Yuu offered while moving back to the front of the store to check them out. "It's part of her charm." Despite the calm words, her mind was trying to disect what was said. '_A marriage interview?_'

The compliment didn't help ease Sayaka's worry, and she couldn't even get a word in before the two continued to chat away at each other. "Oh yes, yes. She's like me, keeping to herself. But I would like to at least meet this mysterious person. I hope they're well read; most young ones today don't appreciate the feel of pages in their hands."

At that moment, the front door opened again, admitting Sayaka's father. "Ah, just checking up since it was taking a while," he admitted, smiling when he saw his mother-in-law at the counter already. "Sayaka, why don't you come back and talk about what you were saying before you left?"

Yuu tried to keep her nose into her own business, but couldn't help listening to what was being told to her. "You know, Dearie, I wouldn't mind it if she found someone like you." The older woman continued as if nothing had happened. "You've always been so helpful and kind to an old lady like me. Gives me hope for this new day and age. Maybe you know who she's dating by any chance? Are they nice?"

"That's..." Sayaka looked between her dad and her grandmother. "You see..."

"What is it, Sayaka?" Her father paused curiously, looking over his shoulder on his way back to the car. "Come now, I want to know who you're bringing with us to the mountains."

Sayaka's eyes darted back to Yuu, hearing her grandmother speak so kindly. "Though if she were to be dating, do you know if they like books like we do?"

"Sayaka, come on, your mother wants to hear who it is."

"That's..." Sayaka felt the pressure building, conversations coming from different sides of her, prying into her life. A sudden fear gripped her, knowing that she would be put on the spot again and again to meet people, to be introduced to guys who she didn't even know. The panic built and built until it reached a point where desperation took over. "I'm dating Yuu!" She suddenly screamed out, hands going to cover her face. Silence hit the store instantly, every eye on the girl who just shouted. Her shoulders were quivering, eyes fighting back tears. Carefully she peeked through her fingers to see her underclassman looking at her in shock and disbelief. "Please..." Her mouth spoke silently to her. "Please help me..."

Yuu didn't know what to do or say. The declaration was sudden, shocking to say the least. However, the way that her friend was standing, the desperation in her eyes, and the way her bottom lip was shaking as if to hold back sobs, it was too much to ignore. "Ah...Y-yeah...We're... dating. Uhm... I thought... they knew already..."

The sudden smile on the older lady's face lit up the room. Her hands went to Yuu's cheeks to pinch them both merrily. "Oh, you little girl! You hid such a thing!"

"I-it's embarrassing!" Yuu struggled, looking to Sayaka for help.

"Granny! L-leave her cheeks alone." Sayaka quickly darted to Yuu's side and held her arm with both of her own. "I... yeah, I was just going to ask her if she could make the trip, right, uhm, Darling?"

"I-I guess?" Yuu tried to laugh it off. "That's... that's how things are!"

"So, uhm, I'm going to stay here with my... girlfriend... for a bit and talk to her about it. You go on ahead and I'll be there in just one moment, okay?"

Yuu was frantically trying to bag the books with her one free hand so she could turn them over to the buyer. "Uhm, thank you for coming, please stop by again!" The two adults slowly left, one looking shocked while the other looking very pleased with herself. Once the doors closed, the two girls met eyes. "The heck!?"

"Sorry, Koito-san, I just needed a way out of that…"

"Yeah, but telling them we were dating? What's going on?" Their voices were in a harsh whisper, trying to keep anyone else from overhearing them.

"They tried to set me up to marry someone I don't even know!" The way Sayaka's voice broke midway through made Yuu calm down, eyes suddenly soft.

"They did?"

"…Mmn." Looking away, Sayaka rubbed her arm. "When I came out to them, we made a deal that if I couldn't find anyone then they would help me…They just want what's best for my future, I know, but…"

Sighing, Yuu sank back. "Okay, fine… But why me? Why not Nanami-senpai?"

Sayaka looked away as she slowly let go of Yuu's arm. "I confessed to her over the school trip that we took… She said no. I couldn't ask something like this to her after that."

"I see… Sorry… to hear that." Yuu awkwardly took a step back. "Fine then…" Her words made Sayaka look at her again. "If it's just your family… I don't mind pretending."

"Koito-san…" With a soft sigh, she raised a hand to pat Yuu's head. "Thank you."

"Hey, you don't have to pet me!" The smaller girl fumed, glaring up at her friend. "I'm not a kid, you know."

A small laugh. "But you're so small, it makes me want to."

"I just haven't grown yet!"

"Yuu?" Rei's voice came from the stairs as she walked down and into the shop. "I heard yelling, is everything okay?" The older sister came over to Yuu, protectively looking around to see if anyone was causing the disturbance. "Ah, hello, I've seen you a few times before." She addressed Sayaka. "Are you Yuu's friend?"

"Rei-chan, this is Saeki-senpai, she's my—" The door opened again, revealing Sayaka's dad.

"Sayaka, come on now."

Rei blinked. "Your?"

"My…" Looking between the two, her face fell into a grumpy, halfhearted glare at her upperclassman. "My…. Girlfriend…"

Sayaka took that moment to quietly step back and bow. "Thank you, I need to be going now. See you tomorrow Koi-I mena-Yuu."

Yuu felt herself slump forward onto the checkout counter while Rei assaulted her with questions. "See you tomorrow Senpai."

As the day progressed, the red head had to fight to ignore her older sister bombarding her with question after question. It wasn't until she was finally able to close down the shop and make it to the bath that she had some time for herself. Stripping her clothes, she placed them in a small basket before washing her body quickly so she could relax.

Sinking into the water, the girl sighed out in comfort. Being so tiny, she was able to completely submerge herself down to her nose so she could enjoy the comforting hug of warmth all around her. A few seconds passed for her before she slid back up to take a nice deep breath. Her phone was next to her, a small light flashing on it snagging her attention. Yuu reached over to pick it up and carefully tap on it to reveal her home screen. With a flick, the top was brought down and the messenger app was touched.

Nanami-senpai: I heard from Sayaka! I hope it didn't put you out too much?

Saeki-senpai: I'm so sorry, Koito-san.

With a sigh, she replied to Touko first. "Don't worry about it, I'm sure it'll only be for a while at the bookstore. Though, I'll have to tell Rei-chan about it soon. She's been annoying me all night." Sending that message, she brought up Sayaka's. "It's fine, I'll explain to my sister when we're alone and ask her to go along with it." Only a moment passed before the reply came to her message.

Sayaka: Koito-san, can I ask a really selfish favor?

Yuu: I can't promise anything, but sure?

Sayaka: Could you pretend to be my girlfriend for a week?

Yuu: Hah!?

Sayaka: I have a family get together over winter break. If I bring you, everyone will stop trying to set me up with people, and my family will ease up on me… please? I'll do anything I can in return.

Yuu: Hold on, I think we should talk this over. Can I call you later?

Sayaka: I can call now?

Yuu: Fine.

Only a few seconds passed before Yuu's phone rang. Answering it, she leaned back into the water and sighed out. "Hey Senpai."

"I hope I'm not bothering you?" Sayaka's voice came from the other side.

"I'm taking a bath, it's fine."

"I am too, actually." Sounds of water moving came. "You're on speaker."

"That's a good idea." Yuu tapped her phone and sat it on the side of the tub so she could just lean back. "Okay, so… What exactly is going on?"

Yuu heard the girl take a deep breath before speaking. "Okay… My family knows that I like girls. Although they don't really, how to say, encourage the idea, they accept it. The deal was that if I could find someone I could be happy with, they would fully accept and support me, but if I couldn't, then they would help me find someone to be with."

"That… sounds so old fashioned." Yuu replied uneasily. "Can't you just tell them to back off?"

"I…"

Sighing, Yuu shifted, making the water splash around a bit. "I get it. What do I need to do?"

"You'll really help?" Her voice was soft.

"I'm not going to leave you all alone." Yuu thumped some water while talking. "I can deal with this for a bit, but we have to tell our friends so they don't misunderstand. That aside, what is this about a family get together?" Silence answered her. "Senpai?"

"Koito-san… actually… I need you to come with me to Hakuba Valley." Bringing her thumb up to her mouth, Sayaka bit her nail nervously. "It's a ski resort, we have a cabin there."

"…What did I sign up for…?"

"It's just for a few days!" Sayaka promised quickly. "Please, Koito-san!"

"…Okay." Yuu groaned, sinking into the tub and looking up at the ceiling.

"…Touko was right, you are too kind." The words were soft, almost guilty sounding. "I'm sorry, Koito-san."

"Yeah… So, what do I need to do?"

More sounds of water splashing came as Sayaka rested her head on the sideof the tub, cradled by her arms."Just pretend to love me?"

"…I don't know how."

"Just like you would anyone else."

"No, Saeki-senpai… I don't know what love is." The word came out a little more heartbroken than Yuu realized. "You see… I've never been in love. I've never felt those feelings before, and I don't think I ever will… I'm broken." The last two words were barely a whisper, fading into the warm water surrounding her.

"Koito-san…" Sayaka breathed out the name softly.

"I have to go, Senpai. I'll talk to you at school tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah… Goodnight, Koito-san."

"Night, Saeki-senpai." Yuu reached over and tapped her phone before sinking under water again fully. The warmth engulfed her, hugging all around her body as she lost herself into the weightlessness of it. '_Love…_' her mind thought sluggishly. '_It's something I can't understand, Senpai…_'

The next day Yuu found herself being taken to the Echo coffee house after school. The warmth of the place was a nice contrast to the freezing cold outside, and before long the two found themselves seated near the back for privacy in the lightly crowded area. "I'll pay," Sayaka declared to her. "Get whatever you want."

"A blend then, please." She told Miyako when she came to them. Sayaka mimicked her order and the two were left alone once again. "So…"

"So…" Sayaka fidgeted in her seat. "Thank you again for this."

"It's fine. I just don't want to mess it up for you. I'm not sure how to do this, I don't even know anything about you."

"Let's start with names?" Sayaka suggested after a few more moments of no talking. "May I call you Yuu-san?"

"If we're dating, do you think the -san is necessary?"

"…Probably not." Sayaka took a breath. "Yuu."

"Yes, Sayaka-senpai?"

The older girl felt a small ping of joy at the name paired with the honorific. "I think the senpai part could be left off? We need to sound close."

"…Then… Sayaka Sweetheart?" The word made Sayaka blush at once, siting straight up in her chair. "You have such funny reactions, Sweetheart." Unable to keep it in, Sayaka gave a small squeak and looked away, trying to keep her face straight. "…Sweetheart? What is it?"

"You're having too much fun." Sayaka scolded her, still looking away. "What if I called you Darling?"

"I wouldn't mind. Go ahead." Yuu replied easily.

"Then," As their drinks were being sat down in front of them, Sayaka stated her words clearly. "Enjoy your coffee, Darling." She lifted her drink to her lips.

"Thank you, Sweetheart." Yuu easily replied, enjoying watching her friend snort into her drink. Miyako just smiled at them and turned away to give the girls their alone time. "That aside, I don't really know anything about you at all."

"The trip is over the winter break, so we have two days to get to know each other." Sayaka sat her coffee down. "This feels like I'm speed dating."

"The feeling is mutual." Yuu agreed, sipping her coffee after adding in some cream and sugar. "I still have to ask permission from my parents to go. What all should I bring?"

"Some clothes, pajamas, bathroom things, the usual. I'll go shopping with you to get you some winter clothes for skiing."

"I don't know how to ski." Yuu looked at the girl over her cup. "I'll look like an idiot."

"I'll teach you." Sayaka smiled gleefully. "Seeing you fall over yourself over and over is reward enough for it."

"You say that, but your looks tell a different story." Yuu leaned back and crossed her arms. "How many days is this anyway?"

"Five days; one there, three staying, one back." The look of uncertainty on Yuu's face was clear as day for her. "Please forgive me for asking something so heavy."

"I've already agreed, so stop complaining…Sweetheart."

The way she said it made Sayaka sink down a little in her chair. "Don't force yourself… Sayaka-senpai will be fine for now."

"Yeah." Once again, an awkward pause hung over them as they slowly drank their coffee. "This is going to be tough." Yuu sat her drink down and looked over the table. "Fine, let's get together tomorrow for a date."

"A date?" Sayaka repeated the words, a sudden flashback hitting her from when she was in junior high. "A date, huh?" Looking down, a sad smile came across her lips. "Yeah, I think a date would be nice." Her emerald eyes lifted up again to meet golden ones. "Then, Yuu, will you go on a date with me?"

Yuu swallowed thickly. Even though it was her idea, hearing those words made it suddenly very real. "Yeah." She spoke easier than she thought she would. "I'd like that, Sayaka-senpai." The two finally fell into a comfortable silence as they enjoyed their coffee together.

Yuu looked in her closet, humming to herself as she moved clothes around. Most of her attire was for cooler weather, but she did have a few things to wear for her date with Sayaka. Rei was sitting on the bed behind her, watching as she rooted through the clothing to hold up against herself. "So you're going on a date?" The elder sibling asked around a stick of pocky. "I thought you said that this was just pretend for a little bit?"

"It is," Yuu confirmed, looking in her mirror while swapping clothes before her. "But we have to make it look real, so we're going to give it a test run today." Turning, she held out the hangers. "Which one?"

"Black," Rei answered easily. "But why are you so worked up over it?"

"I have to make sure I play my part!" Yuu scolded. "Besides, she's my friend. I shouldn't go easy on this just because it's a favor. She really needs me." Once more she turned, this time holding socks.

"The fluffy ones." Rei pointed. "Still, it's just odd. I thought you were head over heels for Nanami-chan?"

"Nanami-senpai is different," Yuu revealed while tossing clothes on the bed next to her sister. "Being with her is normal." Despite her words, she briefly wondered if making out with your friend really was considered normal. "We're not dating." Again she looked at her clothes and nodded to herself.

Rei sighed as her sister began to strip down. "Still, I can't help but think you're taking this rather too seriously." She pointed at Yuu with a new piece of pocky. "We don't go out of our way to match our underwear to our clothes unless we think someone might see them."

Yuu looked down at her white and black underwear that did, indeed, match the general scheme of her clothing. "You picked them, don't say things!" Yuu protested at once. "Besides, Sayaka-senpai always treats me like a kid, so I wanted something more mature looking."

Rei just hummed, pushing the stick of candy into her mouth while chewing. "So you're saying if she sees you in that set, she would think of you less like a child?" She got a nod. "Then, isn't that the same as wanting someone to see them?" Caught on the spot, Yuu chose not to reply. Instead she pulled up her leggings by hopping, only to fall onto the bed. "Real mature, little sis."

Grumbling, the girl smoothed out the leggings and slid up her skirt. A little while later, she looked into the mirror to admire herself. Boots, fluffy white socks that went above them, black leggings, skirt, matching top and covered with a jacket. "I think I look rather nice."

"Why not let your hair down?" Rei offered. "It'll make you look a little older."

"Think so?" Yuu reached behind her head to undo the ties holding her little pigtails together. Once free she shook her head and turned to admire it. "I'm not sure, I think I look weird."

"Girls always change their hair when it's important." Rei mused helpfully. "Give it a shot." She watched Yuu get the flat iron so she could remove the kinks in her hair. "That being said, when are you supposed to meet?"

"At the train station around noon," Yuu mused. "We're going to a movie, shopping, and then to dinner."

"Sounds romantic."

"Yeah, yeah." Finishing herself up, she looked at Rei. "Okay, how am I?"

"Solid eight out of ten." Rei praised. "Would be higher, but I like taller people."

"Oh shush." Yuu grabbed her purse and checked her phone. "I'm off then." She watched Rei wave her off before jogging down the stairs and out the front of her house. The train was caught with no hassle and before long she arrived at the station where she would meet her date for the day. The meetup area was found and Yuu smiled lightly to herself when she saw Sayaka already there waiting. The girl was in a nice-looking attire of flowing clothing that was a mix between formal and casual, her hair actually up in a ponytail.

"Yuu," Sayaka looked thankful when her date came by. "Hey, you're early."

"So are you," Yuu smiled up at her. "Did you wait long?"

"No," Sayaka glanced around before turning back down to her friend. "Shall we go then, Yuu?" Offering her hand, she gave a soft smile.

Yuu took the hand slowly, feeling a little embarrassed walking next to her. "Uhm, I like your hair," she tried to start the conversation. "It looks really nice like that."

"I overheard you once tell Touko that you liked ponytails," Sayaka replied with a light teasing tone to her voice. "Your hair looks really nice today too, I don't get to see it down much."

"Hehe, I wanted to try something different for you." Yuu scratched her cheek with her free hand. When she noticed Sayaka glancing around again, she tilted her head. "Sayaka-senpai? Is something wrong?"

At first she didn't reply, simply walking with Yuu out into the bustling streets of the city. A few moments passed as they moved together before she finally began to talk. "I used to date a girl," she began, looking over at Yuu for a moment. "For almost a year… I won't go into details, but it ended very badly… with her telling me it wasn't real, and that she didn't actually like girls. It broke my heart." Sayaka guided Yuu along to the shopping distract as she spoke, now paying attention to what was before her. "I met her again a few weeks ago, at the train station. It didn't go much better, but I was able to stand my ground that time. I guess I was just unsettled thinking I would see them again."

Not really knowing what to say, Yuu simply squeezed the girl's hand. "Thanks for telling me."

"Mmmn." Sayaka smiled down at her. "Don't tell anyone, okay?"

"Promise." It was a small thing, just a conversation between them, but it was also the first thing that they had together. A promise of something just for them. Although not much, it was something that they could build on, and they both recognized it.


	2. Chapter 2

Despite preparing for the day, I was still nervous for what was to come. Yuu would be arriving any minute now to properly meet my parents. From there, we would ride to the airport, take a small flight, and arrive at the place we would spend the next few days together at. My eyes scanned the station, watching a new train come to a halt so it could swap passengers. Moments later I spotted Yuu walking towards me, not only wearing one of the outfits that I had bought for her, but also with her hair down as well. '_She's so cute,_' My mind thought at the sight. Yuu was pretty enough in my eyes, but the way that she was smiling at me, knowing what all she was going to go through just to help me out… '_No wonder Touko fell for her…_'

**Pretend for Me II**

**By: Satashi**

"Found you," Yuu stated when getting close to her friend. "I was a little worried about that."

"Thank you for coming, uhm, Darling." Sayaka felt her cheeks coloring at the pet name used in front of her family. "Let me introduce you. Mom, Dad, this is Yuu, my girlfriend." She watched Yuu bow politely to them. "Yuu, you know my grandmother already."

"Hello, Gran-gran." Yuu waved contently, getting a caring smile back at her.

Sayaka's mother stepped forward, taking one of Yuu's hands to hold it in hers. "Such a pleasure to finally meet you! My name is Mizuki, feel free to call me mother!"

"Mom!" Sayaka almost shouted the word, but managed to hold herself in check. Before she could go any farther, her dad moved forward as well.

"You look like a nice young lady, Yuu-chan. Thank you for being with our Sayaka." He reached to ruffle the girl's hair. "My name is Jin, but call me Father!"

"Daddy!" Sayaka felt her heart racing in embarrassment, cheeks flooding with color. Yuu wasn't much better off, stumbling over her words and trying her best to come up with something to say back to them. "Leave my girlfriend alone," Sayaka finally scolded. "Don't tease her, she's nervous!" Turning to Yuu, she took her hands from her mother. "Don't worry, I'll be with you, okay?"

Yuu was a mix between thankful and nervous, stumbling as she tried to reply. "Y-yeah, thank you…" Looking down at her hands, she let Sayaka move away just enough so they could keep their fingers interlocked "I'll be counting on you, Sweetheart." Instantly Mizuki fawned over the sweet words, complimenting Sayaka on finding such a cute one.

"She's so sweet and cute!" Mizuki began. "And she's so tiny! You better take good care of this one, Sayaka. If I can't have genetic grandchildren, then you at least found a good one to adopt with!"

"Gr-grandkids?" Yuu asked in shock, looking at Sayaka. "H-hey now…"

Sighing, Sayaka pulled on Yuu's hand to lead her ahead of everyone else. "Aaaaand the week begins," she groaned out. Before she could make it very far, she felt a squeeze on her hand that made her look behind herself. "Yes, Darling?" The words came so easily that she actually felt a spark of confusion, as if she had called her that without realizing it.

"Nothing," Yuu smiled. "I'm just happy you seem to have calmed down and are happy again." Flashing that sweet smile, Sayaka had to turn away, eyes ahead and hand clutching her shirt.

Once the group made it to the privately owned airport, Yuu couldn't help but gasp as she looked around. She could tell Sayaka was a little embarrassed over it, but she couldn't repress the awe in her voice. "This is so neat…" Her words were barely held in check, eyes sparkling with wonder at the many things going on around them at the time.

"It's just a little airport," Sayaka told her quietly. "My dad's friend runs it, so every now and then we get to use it for travel."

"Still," Yuu insisted while walking across the lot to a small plane. "This is my first time flying." The group was ushered along, their bags being taken for storage, and before long the two girls found themselves next to each other on the plane. The seats were small, with no armrest between them, and only two to the aisle. Still, Yuu was eagerly looking out the window while chattering on and on about how cool it was.

Sayaka couldn't help but feel a little proud of herself for making her friend so happy. Despite everything she had unloaded onto the girl, she at least managed to somehow get her to feel comfortable enough to be laughing. It eased her heavy heart, allowing her to just take in the moment of joy her friend was having. '_Adorable,_' She thought lightly just as Yuu turned to give her an embarrassed smile.

"What are you thinking about?" Yuu asked her, moving to sit back in her seat next to her friend. "You were staring at me."

"Nothing," Sayaka waved the question off. "Are you ready for your first flight?" A happy nod came and before long the plane was starting to taxi down the runway. She felt Yuu grab her hand while looking around excitedly. The two interlaced their fingers and Sayaka leaned back in her seat. Her eyes closed, having flown enough to know what was about to happen.

Yuu took the cue to lean back as well, feeling the plane start to pick up speed. A rattling sound made her glance outside, seeing the plane's wings flexing at specific joints. Then, without much other warning, she felt a sinking feeling in her gut. The plane lifted and she was pushed back into her seat, eyes wide. She watched the ground leave them and suddenly get smaller and smaller until they finally began to level off. The force pressing on her released and a breath she had been holding was exhaled. "That felt so weird…" She admitted with a nervous smile.

With a giggle, Sayaka agreed. "Landing is even worse, so be ready." She got a nod and soon Yuu was staring out the window again. "We'll be flying for about an hour or so." Watching the girl, she once again felt that little jolt of happiness in her. Minutes passed between them before Yuu finally leaned back and rubbed her forehead. "What's wrong?"

"Feel a little funny," Yuu admitted softly. "Kind of dizzy,"

"Relax, close your eyes, focus on something else." Without thinking, she lifted her arm and pulled Yuu up under it. The shorter girl fit just under her, head nestling against her shoulder as if it had meant to go there all along. "Just a little air sick," she told the girl. "It'll pass."

"Hope so…" Yuu's voice was soft, body sagging against her friends. "Sorry…"

"Don't apologize." Sayaka scolded her soothingly while using one hand to brush hair from the girl's face. "Just relax." She placed her cheek against Yuu's hair, mind racing with ways to handle if her supposed girlfriend did start to get sick. Her eyes darted around, taking note of the sick bags, where the water bottles were, and then laying eyes on her grandmother reaching out to offer some motion sickness medicine. "Thank you," She praised while accepting it. "Yuu, here, take this."

Yuu watched Sayaka open a bottle of water for her and offer the pills. "What is it?" Yuu asked weakly. Her stomach turned from some turbulence they hit, making her hesitate on drinking anything. The pills were still taken as they were explained and after that she leaned back against Sayaka for support once more. She felt the arm move comfortably over her again, a soft scent of strawberries hitting her nose. Then, a gentle petting came on her head, paired with a soft movement of air over her face when Sayaka gently blew on her. "That feels really nice."

It only took a few more minutes before the medicine started to effect Yuu. The girl started to breath more steadily, body relaxing as sleep overtook her. Sayaka smiled to herself when the quiet sounds of snoring began to come from her. "Good girl," she complimented. Her own eyes closed and she leaned into Yuu's body, shifting just enough so the smaller girl was resting on her more. '_She's so small…_' The words made a smile come to her face, '_Makes me want to protect her from everything._'

The time in the plane went by quickly, Sayaka dozing off for a moment as well. When the pilot announced their landing, Yuu found herself being shaken carefully. "…Huh?" She asked groggily, the pill's sleeping effect still heavy on her body.

"We're landing. Good job Yuu, you made it." Sayaka slowly pulled her arm back and helped Yuu sit properly. "Just sit like that, face forward, and relax." The words seemed to make the girl relax even more, body limp as she obeyed. Although a little jarring, the two soon found themselves back on the ground and going out into the shockingly cold area outside.

"Oh wow, what a way to wake up." Yuu rubbed her arms briskly. The freezing air seemed to penetrate her lungs with ice when she breathed, a soft fog of mist coming from her mouth as she exhaled. "Kind of makes me feel invigorated."

"Hope you like the cold," Jin laughed while helping unload their luggage. "Have you ever been skiing before, Yuu-chan?"

Yuu smiled brightly. "I haven't, but Sayaka-senpai said she was going to teach me. I'm really looking forward to it.

Mizuki returned the smile while holding out Yuu's backpack. "For now, we'll go to the cabin and meet up with everyone. We can introduce you to the family and then get something to eat."

Nodding, Yuu accepted her bag and shouldered it. Her gaze turned to the area around them, a small airport with snow all around them, only being cleared out for the runways. There were mountains over the horizon and a large city was a little in the distance, slightly lower in elevation to give them a good view of the scenery. "It's so beautiful..."

"Isn't it?" Sayaka stepped next to her, looking over the bustling city framed by the steep stone peeks covered in snow. "Thank you again, Darling."

"...Yeah." Yuu's hand lightly moved to the side, one finger extending to seek warmth from her friends. To her surprise, she found Sayaka's meeting her half way. The two curved their fingers to hold onto each other's, lightly blushing as they each looked towards the other. "This is kind of nice, honestly," she admitted softly. "I hope that's not weird."

"Not at all... I'm... actually enjoying it, you know?" Sayaka gave Yuu a gentle look. "It's nice feeling wanted for a change."

"Eh?" Before Yuu could ask what she meant, their little moment was shattered by the loud clambering of people behind them. They took a step away from each other, hands going back to their sides.

"Ready?" Jin's voice called out, making them turn and quickly jog a few steps to catch up.

"No way..." Yuu's breath caught as she looked at the large cabin before her. Three stories tall, large glass windows, surrounded by trees and snow. Already there were a few cars parked there, and several people inside. From the looks of it, at least three other families. "It's huge."

Sayaka tapped her on the shoulder as she moved by, smiling at her. "It's going to be a little wild in there. If you need a breather, just grab my hand and squeeze okay?" Getting a nod, she took a breath and exhaled, thick fog blowing from her mouth. "Let's go then, Darling."

"Mmmn." Yuu followed next to her, immediately getting swept into a whirlwind of greetings, bows, hand shakes, and names. Different branches of the family seemed to be everywhere all over Japan, some with heavy accents and others who seemed to be overly cheerful and talkative. Sayaka's grandmother wasted no time in showing Yuu off to a few of the older women, bragging about how Yuu ran a bookstore to them. Once done there, she was pulled to another section to meet a few teenage cousins of Sayaka's. Before she could even place names to faces, three younger pre-teens ran around her asking all sorts of questions that the poor girl didn't even know how to answer.

Time seemed to rapidly speed by for the girls, being dragged off for photos, conversations, and eventually crammed in a car with countless others to go to a steakhouse so fancy that Yuu almost felt afraid to touch anything. Despite this, the fact that Yuu realized she could eat a steak and shrimp at the same time made everything worth it. After an insanely pampering meal, running around with some of the younger family members when back at the cabin, and tasting wassail for the first time ever, she finally fell onto the couch next to her friend.

"This has been an amazing day," Yuu breathed out while leaning against the taller girl. When eyes turned to them, Sayaka instantly felt her cheeks growing increasingly red while trying to casually drape her arm over Yuu's shoulders. "S-senpai?" Yuu looked up at her, cheeks suddenly warming up.

"Y-you look tired, so..." Sayaka stammered out her response and got several chuckles from all around. "Anyway, I'm happy you're having fun. I hope you weren't teased too much?"

"Besides being called short at least fifty times..." Yuu pouted at her. "I thought these things were meant to embarrass the family member, not the guest. I want to hear something embarrassing about you!"

"Denied." Sayaka rejected the idea instantly.

From the side, one of the older males laughed out at the responce. "Sayaka, don't be like that! Why don't you do something for your girlfriend? Ah, why not play her and us a song?"

"A song?" Yuu blinked, head tilting to look up at wide green eyes. "You play something?"

"Does she not know!?" Another voice Yuu couldn't place. "Did anyone bring a violin?"

"I have mine!" A teenage girl took the chance to embarrass her cousin and quickly moved to where the luggage all was to get a case. "Here, feel free."

Yuu looked as if she had been shown a live pack of jellyfish. "You play the violin!? So cool! That's so freaking _cool_!" Her eyes were shining, body almost hopping in her seat. "Play me something? Please?"

Sayaka knew even the tips of her ears were red, but she still stood up to accept the instrument. The room got quiet, all eyes on the girl. Shouldering the violin, a deep breath was taken and the bow was placed to the strings. Soothing music filled the room as the woman went through a simple routine, two songs blending together as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Yuu felt all words leave her, suddenly fixated on her upperclassman. She knew in the back of her mind that she was staring, but she couldn't bring herself to look away. The elegance of the motions captivated her, the way Sayaka swayed and moved was almost as if she were breathing the music herself. The melody all to soon faded to a close and soon clapping was all around. Still, Yuu could only gaze in appreciation of what she had heard. "Beautiful," she spoke when Sayaka looked at her.

Returning the violin, Sayaka went back to Yuu and looked down at her. "Pleased now, Darling?"

"No," Yuu breathed, fists clenched in front of her. I want to hear it even more! Promise me you'll play when we get back home as well?" The reaction caused everyone to fawn over them, happy calls of how adorable the pair looked coming from all around.

"Okay, okay, I think we've had enough for the night!" Sayaka pulled Yuu to her feet. "We're going to turn in. See you all tomorrow."

"Awww! I wanted to hear stories about you!" Yuu complained playfully as she was hauled off to grab their baggage. Sayaka's mother called out what room they would be staying in and before long, the two were entering their quarters for the next few days

Yuu beamed as she let her backpack fall to the floor. The room was large, easily three times the size of her bedroom back home. The cabin was decorated in style, mostly glass and wood adorning everything. There was a table for two near a large window that spanned floor to ceiling and looked out onto a balcony. A huge king sized bed was against one wall, complete with a television that was big enough to be a mini movie screen. To her surprise there was even a tiny little kitchenette with a hotplate, small fridge, and sink. "Wow..."

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Sayaka agreed. "The bathroom is over there." Pointing, she watched with glee as Yuu jogged a few steps to open the door. A large western style shower covered one section of the wall while another housed a small jet tub big enough for two people. "Don't forget the balcony." Sayaka added, turning to point to the other side of the room. Usually she felt reserved when it came to her family or status, but seeing the sheer excitement and joy on Yuu's face seemed to melt that fear away. "Careful, it's cold out there."

"Ya think?" Yuu playfully called over her shoulder while briefly peeking out to the balcony that overhung a drop off of the cliff their cabin was on. "Wow, this is so neat!" With a little hop, she turned around to smile at her friend. "I feel like I'm the one being spoiled here."

"You're doing way more than you think you are." Sayaka began to put her things into a dresser so they wouldn't get too wrinkled staying in her suitcase. "I can't thank you enough for this... Really, Yuu, you're saving me."

"I'm glad," Yuu replied while walking over to join her, backpack being grabbed and unzipped. "I've been wanting to really try and be a good friend to you. I'm happy to finally see you smile like this."

"Do I... not smile much?"

Yuu slowed down her unpacking, trying to judge her words. "It's not that... Sometimes I just feel as if your smiles are sad. Like you're only doing it for the other person." Despite this, she turned to face Sayaka fully. "But tonight, when you were playing and looking at me, I felt as if you were really enjoying yourself. It made me happy."

Not sure what to say at first, Sayaka kept unpacking her things. After a few moments, she finally looked over at Yuu again. "Honestly? I'm happy." The words were a relief to say, as if a small weight was lifted from her heavy heart. "I'm actually _really_ happy right now."

"Sayaka?" Yuu's voice was soft, concerned. "Are you...crying?"

"Huh? No!" Quickly wiping her eyes she coughed out a laugh. "That's odd, they just... won't stop." A small sob overtook her words and she covered her face with her hands. "I'm fine!" Despite this, a small gasp shook her body. "Why am I crying!? I'm happy! I'm happy..." A light warmth came on her back as Yuu hugged her from behind. She felt the girl's cheek rest between her shoulders and arms move around her waist to hold her. "Yuu?"

"Yes, Sweetheart?" The simple reply made Sayaka whine lightly, rubbing her eyes with her arm. When no answer came, the girl gave a small squeeze. "Hey, know what makes me feel better?"

"What's that?" The small outburst was beginning to get under control, a few sniffles remaining as evidence of it.

"Come here," Stepping back, Yuu helped guide her to the bed. "Here, sit with your back to the headboard." Literally having to jump to get onto the tall bed, Yuu shifted the pillow to make a backrest for her.

"What's this about?" Sayaka wiped her eyes once more, but still did as she was asked. Crawling up, she sat with her back to the pillow and legs out before her. Once settled, Yuu leaned over with a smile.

"You have to promise me one full minute."

"Of what?"

Holding up a finger, Yuu repeated her words. "One full minute. Promise me?"

"... I promise." She watched as Yuu shifted and gave a small half shriek as she suddenly found herself being straddled. "Y-Yuu!?" She was shushed though, and the tiny girl sat on her thighs. "What...?"

"One minute." Yuu whispered, putting her arms around her friend and holding her in a close hug. "This always made me feel better when I was younger."

Sayaka leaned into the hug and moved her arms around Yuu's waist. '_What am I doing?_' Her mind asked herself as the listened to the sound of Yuu's breathing. '_This is silly...'_ Still, she had made a promised and she didn't want to break it. Seconds ticked by, the only sounds that of the people downstairs laughing and chattering faintly. A gentle stroking on her back came and it made her eyes close and body sag forward ever so slightly. '_She probably thinks I'm a mess after crying like that... Why is she still holding me?_'

Soft strokes down her back, a warm body pressed against her, and whispering breaths rustling against her hair. Sayaka's body relaxed even more, her hands pressing against Yuu's body properly now to return the hug. '_She could have just ignored me... she could have pretended not to notice... she could have just let me brush it off...'_ The seconds seemed to move slower, the chatter from her family muting into dull murmurings. '_But she's still here. Why is she still here? She can let go of me... Why isn't she letting go of me?_' Pressing her body closer, Sayaka began to pull Yuu against her frame. '_She can let go at any time, it's been a minute hasn't it? When it's over, she can just let go and pretend it never happened and I can pretend like I'm okay.'_

The tears had stopped, but her throat still hurt. Against her will, a small hiccup came and she pushed her nose against Yuu's neck. '_Just pretend it's okay like everyone else... Just let me go._' Despite her thoughts, her hands gripped Yuu's shirt tightly, breath catching as the warmth against her refused to leave her. '_Everyone leaves me, it's okay to be alone... it's okay to feel this way... Just smile... just smile and she'll let go.'_ When Yuu stayed on her, not wavering even as she began to pull painfully hard against her to keep her close, Sayaka finally whispered out the words that had been gripping her heart. "I'm lonely."

Yuu moved just enough to be able to rest their foreheads together. "Are you?" The words were soft, her small hand moving to rub a thumb across the girl's wet cheeks.

"Touko rejected me," Sayaka unloaded her heart in one long strand of whispers. "My girlfriend left me. My parents are never around. I rarely hang out with my friends. I'm scared to open up to anyone; they'll just leave me in the end."

"That's not true." Yuu touched their noses so Sayaka would look at her, green eyes fluttering open. "We all have painful moments, but they make up a part of who we are. I don't... fully understand love, but I do know that even if Nanami-senpai said no, she's still there for you. Your friends are there if you want to go out with them, and I'm..."

'_Don't say it,' _Sayaka pleaded to herself. '_If you say it like this, right now, I'll..._'

"I'm not going to leave you." The words were sincere, honest, and softly whispered to her.

Sayaka felt her eyes watering again. "Don't you dare..." Moving her hands up, she gripped Yuu's shoulders to ease her back just enough so they could look face to face. "Don't you dare say that to me unless you mean it."

"I mean it." Yuu gave her a caring smile. "That's why I'm here. I promised, didn't I? I won't leave you."

'_Damn it... Damn it..._' Sayaka held Yuu's shoulders tightly, body starting to loosen up from her small crying spell. '_Don't do this to me... Not you...anyone but you..._'

"So," Yuu smiled at her. "Let me show you that it's okay to trust in others."

"Then..." Sayaka breathed out the word. '_No..._' "Will you..." '_Don't say it!_' "Stay with me?" '_Anyone but you!'_

"Yes."

Leaning her head in, she moved to press a kiss against Yuu's lips. '_On the rebound,_' Her mind tried to justify herself. '_Scared, put on the spot._' When Yuu's initial shock wore off, Sayaka felt the kiss being returned, lips pressing onto hers. '_This isn't true,_' Her hands moved to the back of Yuu's neck, holding her for a second kiss and then a third. '_It can't be true._' Their bodies shifted and Sayaka rolled them to pin Yuu to the bed, looking into her shocked eyes. "Why did it have to be you?" She asked, voice shaking, as she pushed in for yet another kiss.


	3. Chapter 3

Confusing. It was the only way to describe waking up with Yuu cradled against my chest. Her small body was tucked up against mine, head under my chin. Our pillow was tilted sideways, allowing us both to rest on it, our arms draped over each other's bodies. I could feel her breath fluttering against my skin, a small warm spot next to her mouth. Last night came back to me slowly, images and memories fading into focus. We had hugged, kissed, talked, and even cried. Gently I moved my hand to slide into her hair and stroke it. The girl stirred and sleepily opened her eyes, body moving back just enough to give her space to look up at me. Somehow, this cute little thing with messy hair had managed to make me break down and unload everything I had kept inside for so long in one single evening. It was refreshing and scary at the same time, and I couldn't help but be totally confused on exactly how she had managed to do it with so few words.

**Pretend for Me III**

**By: Satashi**

"Uhm... Good morning?" Yuu asked shyly, eyes looking down a moment in embarrassment. "Er, uhm..." Scratching her cheek, she tried to search for the words she wanted to use.

"Good morning," Sayaka repeated the line. "Did you sleep well?"

"Actually, I really did," Yuu revealed softly. "How about you? You seemed really tired once everything calmed down?"

Sayaka briefly flashed back to the frantic kissing and the desperate pulling of Yuu's body to her own. "Uhm...Sorry about all that."

"It's fine, I don't mind. More than that, it seemed like you really needed something like this? Are you really okay? I'm worried."

"I'm good. I honestly feel better about it now... Though.. I still came on rather strong."

"You startled me, kissing me out of the blue like that." When Sayaka looked ready to apologize again, Yuu just shook her head. "I swear, what if someone came in to tell us something?"

"Well, you are my girlfriend." The words made the older girl almost flinch. '_Wait... What are we? I mean, we did kiss, and she didn't really seem against it... She even kissed me back every time. But it's so fast, we don't even know much about each other at all, and I'm still recovering from Touko breaking my heart... Am I using her to get over it? Did I unknowingly like her all this time? What's going on here...?_'

Yuu was thinking, humming softly to herself while she mulled it over. "That's true. I did tell you I wouldn't leave you, and I don't plan on it. So I think kissing is okay? You seem to really like doing the other things too, so-"

"Other things!?" Sayaka instantly blushed, trying to get the sudden images of a panting Yuu under her from her mind. "Hey slow down now, we don't need to -" The look she was getting told her clearly that Yuu was thinking something else entirely.

"I meant putting your arm around me and holding me hand, Sayaka-senpai." Yuu's voice was almost deadpan, eyes looking at the girl as if she couldn't believe what had just been said. "I didn't know you were such a perv."

"Hey, I'm not a perv," Trying to talk her way out of it, she looked for a new topic. "A-anyway, I made us sleep in our clothes so why don't we both take quick showers before everyone else gets up and about?"

Yuu rolled over to her back and let out a long stretch. "That's a good idea. You go ahead and get in, I'll take mine after."

"You can go first." Sitting up on the bed, the woman held the sheets to her chest even though she was fully clothed.

"No, you first. I still have to find all my shower supplied in my backpack anyway." Her friend was about to deny it again, but Yuu pointed to the bathroom door insistently. Reluctantly Sayaka gave in, sliding from the bed to start getting a change of clothes and everything for herself. When Yuu heard the shower water running and then the light splashing sounds of it falling off the girl's body, she quickly reached for her phone and dialed out a number she knew by heart.

Several rings came before the receiver picked up, groaning out sleepily. "Yuuuuu... It's like six in the morning." Touko's voice was husky from sleep, but still seemed happy to hear from her. "What's going on, why are we up?"

"Senpai, What made you kiss me the first time?"

"Hah?" The sounds of rustling came as Touko sat up in her bed. "What's this about all of a sudden?"

"Last night, Sayaka-senpai suddenly kissed me." Her words started to get soft.

"Okay, whoa, back up just a moment, she kissed you?" Walking around her room, Touko began to flick on her lights and rub her eyes. "Start at the beginning."

"We were unpacking, and after talking a bit, I told her that I thought she looked really happy for a change. She said she did feel really happy and just suddenly started crying. I had no idea what to do at first so I just hugged her from the back. Then, I asked her to sit on the bed and give me a minute long hug, it's something my mom and Rei used to do with me when I was sad." Shifting around, Yuu pulled the covers up more to help cover herself from the cool air of the room. "After a little bit, she started to really just... pull on me. Then she said she was lonely and asked me if I would stay with her. I said yes of course, and the next thing I know, she was kissing me."

Touko groaned while rubbing her temples. "Sayaka is really clingy once you get to know her... She hasn't said anything about it, but I can tell that she gets really lonely at times. Every now and then she gives me this look that just begs me to hold her, but never asks me to."

"I see..."

"Did she tell you that she...?" Her words trailed off a little.

"Confessed to you? Yeah." Yuu wished they could be together at that moment to get the reassuring hand squeeze that Touko was so good about doing. "I... hope you're not upset after all that?"

"Upset? Hmmm... That's not the word for it." Touko leaned against the wall while sitting on her bed. "I'm a little jealous, of course. I love you after all. But... We both are in a really comfortable spot with each other right now, you know? I don't want you to fall in love with anyone else, because then I won't be able to keep loving you... But that's so selfish... I guess I don't know what to feel about it right now. Picturing you and Sayaka kissing each other is kinda..." A blush went over her cheeks as the image of her two friends making out with each other came to her mind. "I guess the right word is eroti-"

"I'll hang up on you."

"Just kidding! Don't hang up!" Touko sighed. "Yuu, I love you a lot, so please listen okay? Don't do anything you don't want to do. I know coming from... me... that sounds a little hypocritical, but for real... You're so nice, and you're so easy to love. The way that you give that look while saying 'well okay then' is enough to melt anyone's heart, let alone someone who is desperately seeking love. I've been so greedy with you lately, but... Yuu, if you want to, then I won't be upset with you. Just know that she's delicate and hurting right now."

"...Okay. Promise you're not mad?"

"... I can't stay in this dream forever, Yuu. It hurts, but it would hurt so much more if you passed something by just to stay faithful to the girl you're not even in love with. Just... please don't forget about me if you do find anyone, okay?"

"I would never." Yuu whispered softly. "You're my Nanami-se...Touko-senpai. You'll always be special to me."

A small sniffle came from the other side of the line. "Hey, now you're really making it sound like we're breaking up! Come on Yuu, you need to focus on yourself. Don't let us just use you for emotional support, you need it too. If it feels right..."

"I understand... Thank you, Touko-senpai."

"I love you, Yuu."

"I know... thank you." A small silence came and the two just smiled while saying their goodbyes. Putting the phone down, Yuu realized the water had been cut off in the bathroom. Moments passed and soon Sayaka emerged with her hair up in a towel while wearing lounging clothes.

"I'm done, feel free to go in." Sayaka greeted her. "Didn't even get out of bed? Lazy girl."

"Don't tease me like that." Yuu slid from the bed down to the floor, pausing when she noticed the look Sayaka gave her. "...What?"

"You're so short, it's adorable."

"The bed is just ridiculously tall!" Pouting, Yuu went to her backpack and started rooting through it. "What do I need to wear today?"

"We will probably leave for the ski slopes in three or four hours, so you have plenty of time to relax first. After that, we can bundle up in the heavy gear I bought with you the other day. Did you bring it?"

"Yeah, it's like half my backpack..." Yuu pulled the mentioned clothes and folded them to sat on the dresser for later. "I didn't pack too terribly much, I should probably buy something if I can."

"I'll buy you something later, okay?"

"Ah, don't worry about that. I have a job, remember?" Yuu smiled at her friend. "If you keep spoiling me like this, you'll regret it later."

Sayaka stepped over to her and placed both hands onto the girl's shoulders. "You'll never take advantage of me. I know that."

Yuu looked down and to the side. "Don't just say it like that, it's embarrassing."

"Is it...?" Sayaka leaned forward, voice lowering to a small whisper. "Hey? Last night... Did you really mean that promise you made to me?"

Golden eyes softened as they turned to meet green ones. "I meant it. If you need me, I'm here for you."

"I'm a mess," she admitted in a soft, whispered breath. "I'm clingy and a little over bearing sometimes."

"That's fine," Yuu hesitated. "I think I'm the problem here... I'm not as good as you're making me out to be. I'm broken."

"Don't say that." Sayaka immediately pulled her into a hug. "You're not broken."

"You don't even know-"

"Then tell me!" Sayaka flinched when she realized that she had almost shouted. "...Sorry. I didn't mean to yell. But you're right, I don't know... But I want to."

"Why?"

"I told you... I'm a mess... I cling really hard when... Anyway, I want to know more about you. I mean, hey, you're my girlfriend aren't you?"

"Yes, yes." Yuu agreed. "Now let your girlfriend go get a shower, she smells bad."

"Never." Leaning in, Sayaka made a show of nosing into her hair and audibly sniffing. "You smell delicious."

Yuu pulled back and grabbed her clothes quickly, cheeks burning red. "Geeze! You flirt!" Turning, she trotted into the bathroom, pausing at the door to look over her shoulder. "No peeking!"

"Yes ma'am." Sayaka gave a small wave, pleased at the cute reaction. "See you soon, Darling." The door was slowly closed, Yuu's red face peeking around it until it clicked shut. When the water started to run, Sayaka went to her bedside, grabbing her phone and sitting down.

On the second ring, Touko answered the call. "Aren't you supposed to be on vacation?" She greeted with a small hint of teasing to her voice. "What's up, Sayaka?"

"Touko, uhm... I just want to make sure of something..."

"Let me guess, you kissed Yuu and you're worried I'm mad."

"...How?"

The next words came out smugly, as if she had waited her whole life to speak them. "Never underestimate my intelligence network." She got the groan that she wanted and continued. "Hey, Sayaka? I want to tell you two things, okay?"

"Yes?"

"First...Are you okay? I know I hurt your feelings and you're on the rebound right now. I'm worried that you're clinging onto Yuu because she's so accepting. She has a way of just... making you want to melt in her arms. I don't want you to wake up from that feeling and realize you made a mistake."

Sayaka took a moment before replying, looking down at the sheets and placing a hand where Yuu had slept to see if it was still warm. "I don't know," she answered honestly. "I'm smart enough to know I'm in a vulnerable place, but at the same time, the feeling of relief that she gave me is overpowering any logical thought."

"...You don't know if it's right, but you want it anyway?"

"I'm sorry for being childish. But Touko, is she yours? I will keep my distance if you two are together. I think you like her."

"I love her." Touko told her firmly. "I love how kind she is, how tiny shy is, the way she gives herself so eagerly if it will make me feel better. I love her smile, her scent, I love almost everything about her..." Feeling her chest tighten, she took a moment to collect herself. "But I'm childish too, Sayaka. I know being with her is a fantasy of mine that can't last, but I've kept it going as long as I could. If she does fall in love with someone else, I can't... fault her for that."

"...Okay. What is the second thing?"

"If you hurt her, I will be really mad at you, okay? Same goes for her. I don't want my two most important people to be at odds with each other, or work themselves into a hard spot with hurt feelings... Be yourself, but just know she gives everything she has... Someone who can't help but give and trust, and someone who wants to be trusted and given to. I think you found something you beat me in, Sayaka."

"...Thank you, Touko. You're precious to me."

"And you, to me. Be careful. I trust you."

"...You're going to make me cry." She got a laugh, which spread over to her as well. "I'll try and figure this out. Thank you."

"Have fun, send me pictures."

"You got it. Byebye." After getting a return farewell, the phone clicked and she fell back onto the bed, looking up at the ceiling. "I'm sleepy." She said aloud while listening to the shower water splattering around. '_how late did we stay up late night?'_ Taking a deep, calming breath, her eyes closed for a moment.

"Sayaka?" Yuu's voice made the girl sit up, clearly looking dazed. "Did you seriously fall back asleep?"

"Eh? I just... for a moment...Yeah." She tried to regain some of her dignity as Yuu stepped close to her and stood by the bed. As she did, a smile slowly came up on Sayaka's face.

"What? You're looking at me funny."

"You're just so-"

"If you say short..."

"...Pretty." The word made Yuu falter. "We have a while before we need to go downstairs..." Both her arms went forward. "Yuu? Will you tell me about yourself?"

"...Okay." Stepping into the offer, she felt herself being pulled up onto the soft bed and into Sayaka's embrace.

"Well look who's up!" Sayaka's father greeted the two girls as they finally came downstairs to join the majority of the family all talking together. "You two sure slept in."

Yuu felt embarrassed out of her mind, being called out on falling asleep on the bed again after a nice warm shower. "We were going to be down sooner, but _someone_ wouldn't let me leave the bed, even though she kept me up all night."

"Yuu!" Sayaka almost stumbled.

"Hm?" Pausing, she looked back. "What's wrong?"

"Don't just..." Lowering her voice, she gave her a shocked look while whispering. "Don't just say that around my family?"

"What? Why? It's true, you wouldn't quit talking last night and even made me fall asleep with you again this morning while chatting. What's wrong with that?" A few of the teenagers in the family coughed while others repressed snorts of laughter. "Did I... say something funny?" Her mind racked over what had been said, being confused at first, but slowly starting to turn a dark shade of red. Her eyes went down to the floor, her hands moving to pull the hood of her shirt over her head in an attempt to hide.

Sayaka could only sit down on the couch, accepting the girl under her arm since she refused to look anyone in the eye now. "You guys are so bad," she scolded her cousins. "Don't tease my girlfriend." With the snickers trying to be cut down, Sayaka just sighed to herself. Her eyes went to Yuu, who was pressed to her side, hood still up to cover the hard blush staining her cheeks. '_She's adorable... and to think she's mine... Right? This morning she agreed I was her girlfriend and said kissing was okay, so that means we just officially started dating? So fast, but I have known her almost a year now..._'

Yuu tried to focus her mind on anything else besides the obvious misunderstanding from earlier. '_I can't believe she thought that! But then again, Touko is a total pervert and she's her best friend so... I guess it makes sense. Still though, it's only the second day of pretending to be dating and we've already kissed... This is starting to really get going._' Her eyes slowly moved to look up at the girl holding her and found her face suddenly really close. '_Wait, is she going to kiss me right here!?_' Her body locked up as Sayaka shifted, eyes closing for just a moment before she suddenly felt a tap on her nose. Opening her eyes again, she felt herself growing increasingly warmer as she realized that Sayaka had only put a finger on the tip of her nose.

Tilting her head, Sayaka gave her a smile with laughing eyes. Ever so slowly, Yuu moved as well, moving her own finger to touch Sayaka's nose. "My mom did this when I was little," Sayaka revealed. "It always used to make me smile... Guess we're even now." A sudden clicking sound made the two quickly dart apart and look towards Mizuki, who had her cell phone up with a smile. "Mom!? Delete that!"

"No, you look so cute! Ahhhh, I can't wait till I can boop your children's noses!"

"We're not having kids!" Sayaka protested, getting flustered enough that Yuu began to laugh at her. "Don't you turn on me."

"I've... I've never seen you so lively!" Yuu laughed out at her. "It's so cute!"

Sayaka tried to regain some of her pride by just crossing her arms and pouting, but when her mom took a picture of that as well, she couldn't help but grab a pillow and cover her face. "That's not fair!"

Stepping out of a cramped van and onto the frozen ground, Yuu looked up in awe at the scenery before her. Their cabin was close to the ski slopes, and after only a few minutes of riding, she found herself at a bustling hub of activity. People were all around, some sitting at tables and drinking coffee while others were running around with their friends. Most seemed to have a pair of skis with them, dressed heavier to endure the bitter cold of the higher altitudes. "Oh man... oh man..." Yuu felt her heart racing, excitement clear in her eyes. "Senpai! It's a real ski slope! We're going to ski!"

"That's the idea," Sayaka replied while trying to take in the look before her. Yuu was wearing heavy winter clothing, pants that were black with peach colored triangles shattering across them. A matching top coat seemed to reflect the color in different ways, ranging from a soft pink to orange. Her hair was covered in a beanie as well, the part hanging down in her usual pigtails. Her own attire almost mirrored it, but streaked with the color purple. Although not intending to be matching, standing next to each it other was pretty clear that they knew each other.

The family all gathered for a bit, going over their plans for the day and making check in times to eat together. Then, being wished the best of fun, they all split up into different directions. A few went to go on a scenery tour, others to gift shops, and most of the younger members were heading to the ski lift. As they walked, Yuu couldn't help but just look at everything around her. "This is so neat... I can't wait to tell everyone about this!"

Sayaka lifted up a snowboard from a rental rack by the lifts and looked it over curiously. "Yuu, you should probably get long skis to help with your stability."

"Ehhh? Sayaka, you snowboard? I want to snowboard too." Yuu picked up another board and held it up excitedly.

"No way," Sayaka denied her while using one hand to guide the board back into place. "You've never done this, you're starting on skis." Much to the dismay of her girlfriend, she called over an employee to help set them up. Sayaka managed to adjust the settings on her setup quite easily while Yuu was assisted in learning how skis were clipped on to the boot attachments she got. Before long, they were on their way each holding a pair of skis for the time being.

"No fair, I wanted to watch you snowboard..."

"Not until I teach you to ski first, then I'm picking up the board once I know you'll be okay." Making their way to the lift, she double checked their poles, skis, and phones in their zip over pockets inside their jackets. With that taken care of, they boarded a simple ski lift bench that had a bar come down over their lap. "Careful now," the girl whispered while they began to go up the light incline.

"I'm good, don't worry," Yuu answered absentmindedly while eagerly swaying her feet. "We're so high up!"

Smiling, Sayaka reached over and took Yuu's glove covered hand. "Darling," the choice of words made Yuu pay attention more, turning to look at her girlfriend. "I know you're excited, but before we just have fun together, please let me teach you properly okay? If you hurt yourself because I didn't show you the basics, I'll feel absolutely horrible." Her mind continued silently with '_And Touko would probably yell at me..._'

The gentle tone seemed to make it's way through the excitement and Yuu sighed out in understanding. "I get it. Don't worry, I'll be serious for you."

"Thank you, Honey."

"Honey?" Yuu blinked, tilting her head.

Sayaka almost did a double take, confusion over her face when she realized she had used a different pet name than they had agreed on. "Ah, uhm, I mean, Darling."

"Honey is fine," the girl told her simply. "I don't mind if you call me that."

"Isn't it... embarrassing?" Sayaka tried to recover, cheeks going more pink and not thanks to the weather around her.

"It is, but I'd rather you be honest than just going along with something we talked about before hand." She smiled at her friend. '_I feel like I've had this kind of conversation before._'

"Then...Please call me anything you want as well, okay?"

"Mmmn. I will, Sweetheart." Holding up her pinkie, the two made a little promise to be clear with each other.

It took the pair another ten minutes before they were back on the ground, skis on their feet, and looking down the casual incline of packed snow. Sayaka took the better part of an hour showing the girl the ins and outs of starting and soon they were on their way downwards together. "You're a fast learner," Sayaka praised as she matched the speed Yuu was going at.

"Natsuki taught me how to skateboard a while back," she admitted while focusing. "So this isn't too bad." Using her poles, she righted herself and shifted to go a bit faster.

"Natsuki?" Sayaka tilted her head. "Someone in your class?"

"Ah, no, we go to different schools now. I played softball with her in junior high."

Sayaka easily matched Yuu's pace, eyes watching for mistakes. "You played softball?" It made sense to her, seeing as though Yuu's body looked pretty lean and tone, despite only being on the student council. "I didn't know that."

"You don't know a lot," Yuu grinned at her. "We're going to have to really talk a lot more. I want to know more about you as well." Her body leaned into her movements, skis going more parallel to pick up even more speed. Before long, the two started to slide along, moving left and right in small intervals. "Like playing the violin? Why didn't I know that? That's so cool!"

"Well, we weren't exactly best friends up until now." Sayaka sighed out, suddenly feeling rather bad for treating Yuu like a child all the time. "Hey Yuu?" A happy sound came in reply as they leveled off at the bottom of the beginner slope. "Sorry."

"About what?"

"...Being... me. When we first met."

It took the shorter girl a moment to process the words. "Hey come on now, don't be like that. It's fine, it's fine."

The pair began to unlock their boots from the skis so they could walk to the lift again together. "Doesn't it bother you that I treated you that way?"

"It annoyed me, yes." Yuu answered honestly. "There were a few times I really wanted to just yell at you for never taking me seriously no matter how hard I worked. But that's okay now, we have moved past that."

"It's not okay!" Sayaka reached out to grab Yuu's arm. "I want to make it up to you! I want... to treat you right."

"...Sayaka?" Standing together, the two just looked at each other for a few moments before starting to walk again. "I'd... really like to see what it's like to lay on someone's lap." Yuu admitted after walking a little bit more. "If you let me do that, we'll call it even."

"You could ask for for anything, and that's where your mind goes?" A small giggle made the younger one blush. "Okay. When we're back home again, I'll be more than happy to spend time with you. Until then..." The ski lift moved around again, and they prepared to ride it back up the mountain. "Tell me about your time playing softball?"

By the time night fell, the girls were thoroughly spent. Their cheeks red, noses running, and muscles aching from the various leaning, falling, and walking they had done all day long. The whole group was exhausted, conversation light on the way back to the cabin. Once there and reunited with everyone else, warm drinks were passed around and stories of their days spread with cheer. It wasn't long before Sayaka could tell Yuu was struggling to keep up with everyone, the poor girl's eyes drooping every so often. A small chuckle came from her as she stood, pulling Yuu to her feet as well. "We're going to turn in, I think my Princess is tuckered out."

"That's embarrassing..." Yuu protested sleepily, a shy smile on her lips. "You flirt."

"Maybe," Sayaka waved to her extended family and moved with Yuu to the stairs and up to their room. The door clicked behind them and Yuu instantly rubbed her arms. "Cold?"

"A bit, it's chilly in here with those giant windows." Yuu watched Sayaka go over to the wall where a black glass area was on the wall. "What are you... Is that a fireplace!?"

"Mmmhmm." Sayaka hummed while setting the artificial fireplace to come on. Flames came up and illuminated the small container, heat sliding out from the vents.

Yuu instantly walked over, holding out her hands. "Wow, I didn't even realize..."

"In your defense, we didn't really spend much time in the room last night before we..." Words trailing off, Sayaka looked away.

"Before we what?" Yuu pressed her teasingly. Having dealt with Touko for almost a full year now, she was used to the other always getting embarrassed and fumbling over words when it was turned around on them. This time, however, she suddenly realized that Sayaka was different than what she was used to.

"Before we started making out," Sayaka told her lightly. "Don't you remember?" Moving over, she hugged Yuu from behind, nosing her way to the girl's ear. "Or maybe you need a refresher, hmmm?" When Yuu began to struggle to make a coherent sound, Sayaka giggled at her. "All talk, are we?"

"No, just... wasn't expecting that." Yuu placed her hands on the ones around her waist. "I don't have much experience with this kind of thing... You've had a girlfriend before though, right Dear? What was it like?"

"I don't want to mar this moment with bad memories," Sayaka whispered. "May I tell you about that later?" Even though her eyes were closed, she could still tell Yuu nodded by the feel of the hair moving along her cheek. "I'd rather just focus on you."

Feeling the moment start to get more intense, Yuu leaned back into the embrace. "You're surprisingly affectionate."

"Do you want me to stop?" She pulled Yuu closer.

"Do... you want to keep going?" Yuu turned the question around, unable to give a direct answer to that.

'_She gives everything she has._' The words Touko spoke to her earlier came back into her head. "Yuu, I won't lie to you... I crave things like this... I'm scared I'll take advantage of your kindness. I want someone to be with me, to make sure I'm not alone, but I also know that my desires are unreasonable." A small shiver overtook her body and Yuu slowly turned around to face her.

"I'm... a little scared. This is a lot at once, and really really fast. We jumped right into it blindly and..."

"I'll stop then." Sayaka moved to step back, sadness clear in her voice. "I will never forgive myself if I push you into something you don't want just because I'm clingy."

"I..." Yuu hesitated. "Sayaka... I..."

Sayaka released the girl fully and gave her a soft smile. "Don't worry, I'm okay."

"Liar." Yuu said the word a little more intensely than she had intended. "Don't lie to me. I don't like it." Taking a step forward, she re-closed the space between them and looked up to meet Sayaka's eyes. "If we are going to do this, you can't lie to me. Don't give me that fake smile, I don't want it." She could tell that her friend was struggling now, her body language clearly revealing how she was feeling. "If you push me to far, I'll tell you to stop. If you do something I don't enjoy, I'll let you know. If you cling too hard and make me uncomfortable, I'll talk to you about it. But in return, I want you to be honest with me as well. Don't smile when you're sad. Don't hold yourself back when you need affection. Don't act tough when you need to cry. I don't want that...that _fake_ comfort. Accept me for who I am, and I'll accept you for-"

Sayaka pulled her into a hug, crushing the girl against her body. "Don't regret what you said," the words whispered out against her ear. "I'm trusting you, Yuu. To show you my true self... Please don't hurt me." With that, she leaned forward, claiming the girl's lips in a kiss.

"Sa...ya..." Yuu felt hands slide over her hips and along her back. "Wa...it..." The kissing didn't stop, making her try to get words in whenever she could. "I need... ah... to... to shower..." A gentle lick at her lips made her open her mouth to accept the insistent pressing of a tongue to hers. She gave a small whimper, knees getting weaker as she was tasted. "I'm...hah...hah... sweaty and..."

"I don't care," Sayaka whispered hotly against her lips. "I need you against me."

Yuu could tell her shirt was being worked up, cool hands running along her heating up body. The warmth of the fireplace behind them was seeping into her back, but still allowed a brisk cold feeling when her skin was exposed. '_Is this okay?_' Yuu's breath picked up, head turning to allow Sayaka to kiss down her neck. Another palm was gliding over her side and up to her bra, tracing it until it slid under the back side of the strap. '_Do I tell her to stop?_'

Light pressure came against her body, making Yuu give in and knees buckle to the desire. The two sank to the floor, laying onto the thick carpet before the dancing flames behind black glass. Sayaka inhaled the girl's scent deeply, exhaling a moan of desire. "Yuu...Angel..." Both palms worked her sides, pulling the shirt up and over Yuu's bra. The kissing paused, Sayaka leaning back to look down at her, chest moving with each pant for air.

'_She's giving me a chance to stop her,_' Yuu realized after a moment of no movement. '_But this much is okay isn't it? I don't have... anything against this do I?_' Her pulse was quickening and she could easily tell it. '_This is... making my heart pound..._' When no protest came, Sayaka's hands continued, pulling the heavy hoodie over and off of her. A tongue went to her collar bone, tracing it until teeth suddenly found the nape of her neck. A sharp intake of air through her nose came with a sting of pain that strangely made her feel rather hot. '_I want to know what this feeling is..._' Soothing licks came to the bite mark on her neck and the sore throb of it only made her want to feel it again. '_Is this love?_'

Sayaka heard the gasps, felt the hands holding her shirt tighten and pull when her teeth bit into the soft skin of her girlfriend. She hadn't been told to stop, and could now feel the tugging on her own clothing. "I want to feel you," the words came again, hotly against Yuu's shoulder. Hands moved, pulling the sweater she wore over her hair and arms. The two looked at each other, intimacy only covered by a simple garment of clothing over their tops and sweat pants over their legs. "I need you..." Leaning down, chestnut hair fell around Yuu's vision as her lips were claimed again. Hot skin pressed against each other, small gasps for air breaking the wet sounds of their steadily increasing pace of kissing.

The resounding thump of her heartbeat rang in Yuu's ears, the blood coursing through her body at a rate she wasn't used to. More kissing came paired with the sticky, sweet taste of Sayaka's tongue moving across hers. Soft nips, hard kisses, and insistent suckling of skin. The combination of it all was making her almost delirious with emotions. Confusion, desire, lust, and curiosity were all swirling in her head, making it hard to think and even harder to speak. The kissing was going down her breast now, bodies shifting so their legs were between each other's.

The brunette on top slid both arms under Yuu's body, one by her waist and the other under her shoulders. Her body pressed up, one knee bending for support and pushing against Yuu's inner thighs. Immediately she got a confused, sexual groan from the girl. The sudden warmth from the area made her willpower even less, and moving up to lick along Yuu's throat, her hips slid forward in a grinding motion.

Yuu could feel most of her rational thought leaving her with that single motion. A gasp came, eyes opening to see sultry green orbs above her. Sayaka's nose was touching hers now, body slowly moving forward and up in a powerful, passionate grind. Each time the push was made against her, Yuu gave a small whimper of desire. Her hands went around Sayaka's body, shocked to find the girl's muscles tensed up so much. Shivers came with each slow grind of their bodies, their stomachs already in a light sheen of sweat from the combined efforts of their actions and the fireplace by them.

When Yuu finally let her head fall back in a moan, Sayaka felt the spike in desire rise up in her chest. The smaller girl was holding onto her arms tightly, body quivering while struggling to figure out some way to reciprocate the motions that were driving her to that state. Still, hesitation clung to what little was left of her rational thinking. '_I have to make sure she's okay..._' Sayaka forced her hips to stop sliding along Yuu's thigh, her knee retreating from between her legs. '_God I don't want to stop..._' holding herself still, she watched Yuu collapse under her, laying on her back ontop that fluffy rug, light from the flames swirling shadows over her features.

Several painstaking seconds passed as Sayaka held herself in check, panting while looking at Yuu's body. Even in the dim light of the room, she could see barely defined abs on her stomach, the outline of her ribs, and how her bra was skewed up to reveal half of her breast. A lithe, toned body for sports... sweating under her in passion. It took everything she had to gently caress Yuu against her, holding the girl while she came down from the high of what could have very well been her first ever sexual contact. "Yuu... my Angel..." Sayaka's voice was shaking. "I... have to make sure you're thinking straight... I want to know what you want."

"I..." Yuu struggled to breathe, giving herself to the intoxicating scent of strawberries and desire. "I'm not sure..." Her whole being was torn. Half of her wanted nothing more than to continue, to see what this new and strange feeling was. The other half of her was scared, unsure of the difference between what love felt like and what lust did to her. "I'm... nervous... but it feels good."

A small whine left Sayaka's mouth, her body clinging to the girl more. "Why do you have to be so cute..." With effort, she said the words that she knew she should, but really didn't want to. "Let's stop... Wait a day... Make sure you want this. Make sure I want this... Make sure we don't mess up."

"Y-yeah..." Yuu instantly felt cold when her girlfriend pulled back from her. Before they could part too much, she pulled her back down, embarrassment starting to peek through the other mass of emotions. "Stay with me for a bit first?"

"You're going to need a miracle to get me off you for the rest of the night."

"Good thing I'm an angel then, huh?" Yuu felt a small laugh of joy come with the words.

Sayaka chuckled at that, holding the girl to her body longingly. "You really are, Yuu... More than you know."


	4. Chapter 4

Twice now I've woken up with someone in my arms. The feelings of warmth against me was something special that I never thought I'd know, but now realized that I would struggle to wake up without it. This time we were facing the same direction, Yuu tucked against me tightly. Our legs were tangled together, my arm over her waist and held onto by hers. My other arm was under the pillow, supporting my head since it was skewed again for Yuu to have most of. The gentle rising and falling of her body with each breath was simply captivating and it made me feel the desire to be with her even stronger. Even though we managed to get into our pajamas this time, she only wore a hooded long sleeve shirt that went to her knees. The sight was intoxicating, making the already cute girl look absolutely delectable. It was no small feat that I was able to control myself last night, and going by the way I was clinging to her now... I wasn't sure if I'd make it another night alone with her.

**Pretend for Me IV**

**By: Satashi**

Sayaka opened her eyes once more when she felt Yuu starting to awaken. Although she had been up for quite a while now, she didn't dare bring herself to move from the position for fear of ending it too soon. Yuu let out a soft yawn and stretched out much like a cat would. "Good morning, Angel." Sayaka whispered gently against the orangish red hair near her face.

"Morning," Yuu lazily answered while shifting to get comfortable. "For being so sudden, it's really nice to wake up like this, huh?"

"Being spooned?" The reply was lightly playful, mostly flirting. "You make an amazing little spoon."

A soft groan came from the girl as she was pulled back a little more to be cuddled. "I don't know if I should be upset about that, or embarrassed that you're so shameless." Her hair fluttered from a chuckle going out against it. "I want to be big spoon next time."

"Noooo way." Sayaka's light tone made Yuu blush even more. "Big spoon is reserved for me."

"Meanie." Yuu pouted, but it turned into a smile when she was nuzzled against. "When you said you were clingy, you really meant it, didn't you?"

"Is that bad?"

"No, I just find it cute." The word was repeated back to her questioningly so she continued on. "You're always so mature looking at school. Elegant even. You have this air about you that makes people like you and respect you without being overbearing. A dependable Senpai... But now I know that you're not perfect, that you have weak moments too. It makes you feel... more real to me." She felt Sayaka lean against her and give a gentle kiss to the back of her head. "It makes me happy that you trust me so much."

"I trust you a lot," Sayaka answered while closing her eyes to savor the moment. "Touko was right about you... There's just something you have that makes people want to be with you."

"You talked to Touko-senpai about me?" Yuu's voice was curious.

"Mmn," the girl moved to gently rub a hand over Yuu's arm while cuddling together. "I was scared I was doing something wrong... I asked her for help. She told me to be careful, that you give yourself so much that you could hurt yourself without even realizing it. That's what made me stop last night... I have to be sure you want me too, that you're not just doing it _for_ me... If that makes sense?"

"It does..." Yuu felt her cheeks heating up and she pulled the covers to her face to hide when remembering the previous night. It was the first time she had been embraced like that, touched in such an intimate way. The memories were almost hazy, as if she had been drunk off the rush of new emotions that she had never felt before.

"Do you regret it?" Sayaka's voice was soft, laced with worry.

'_Do I?_' Yuu's mind tried to take in everything that had happened over the last two days. '_Before, when I was with Touko-senpai, everything felt...natural. It was just okay to do it. With Sayaka-senpai though... It feels hot... intense... But is that love, or is it just my body reacting to the new feelings?_'

"...Angel?" The worry in the word was clear when Yuu didn't answer her.

"Oh! Sorry, I just got lost in my thoughts. Don't worry, Sweetheart." Her body moved, shifting so she could roll over and face the older girl with her. "I don't regret anything." Laying back onto the pillow, she draped an arm over Sayaka's hips. "But you were so bold last night, it was surprising."

"Hehe... Sorry?" They both knew she didn't mean it. "Though, Yuu?" A soft hum came as she looked across the pillow to her. "It's still kind of early..." A hand trailed a single fingertip along Yuu's side, from her hips up to her shoulder. "We probably have about an hour..." Leaning in, her eyes closed.

Yuu brought up a hand to stop the kiss, making Sayaka open her eyes again. "I need to shower, perv."

"I don't mind..." Sayaka tried again, moving Yuu's hand down. "You'll just be a little extra salty."

Sayaka's voice was dipping into what Yuu now thought of as the 'seduction tone', and she once again denied the girl by moving her other hand to touch the tip of her nose. "That won't work on me this morning. I'm icky from yesterday and then sticky from...from..." She suddenly realized how hard it was to say the word.

"...Foreplay?" Sayaka's tone was getting dangerously husky, eyes going sultry.

Before Yuu could be seduced even more, she grabbed the covers and pulled them over Sayaka's head. "Yes, that." While the girl struggled, Yuu slid from the bed and onto the cold floor. "I'm going to shower now, try to keep yourself in check while I'm gone."

Sayaka pouted, managing to get the covers down to watch the girl in only a shirt pad her way across the room to their shared dresser. "We can shower together?"

"No, I want to get clean."

"We can get clean!"

Yuu felt pride welling up in her chest from the effect she was having on her upperclassman. "If you're a good girl, maybe I'll treat you later." The words worked and Sayaka sank back, reserving herself. "No peeking."

"I wouldn't!" She half shouted at Yuu as the door closed. When the water began to run, she fell back onto the bed and pulled the pillow they shared to her chest. Her body scooted over just a bit to where Yuu had been laying to feel the comfort of the warm spot there, a smile on her face. '_I feel... so happy right now._' The thought made her curl up and hug the pillow more, quiet giggles escaping from her mouth for the first time since she had her breakup years ago.

Yuu made her way downstairs first while Sayaka was finishing up her shower, not wanting to be the last ones to show up again. The huge living room was only occupied by a few people then, one of which was her girlfriend's father. Jin smiled at her from behind the small bar area that separated the kitchen from the other room. "Good morning, Yuu-chan. Would you like some coffee?"

"Yes, please." Yuu sat on a barstool and smiled as the man moved to pour her a cup and offer packets of cream and sugar. "Thank you very much."

"You're welcome. Did you two sleep alright?"

"Like a log," Yuu admitted with a small blush on her face. "I was really tired." Her hand moved to rub her shoulder, shocked to find a stab of pain go through her. After a second of thinking, she realized exactly what it was and pushed her hand on it harder, sinking into her seat. "We just... crashed out." Trying not to look obvious, she pulled the collar of her shirt up closer to her neck.

"I see," Jin didn't make any notice of seeing the mark and instead just leaned on the bar. "Yuu-chan, how long have you two been dating?"

'_Crap, how long did I say before?_' Her mind tried to think back to when she was speaking with her older sister. "Uhm... threeee weeks? I think? Uhm, I'm bad with dates and... I was just so happy when she asked me so..."

"Oh? She asked you out? I didn't expect that from her." Jin smiled into his drink. "She picked a good one, my mother in law can't sing your praises enough lately."

"Ahaha... Gran-gran is just too nice. I'm really no one special."

"To make Sayaka fall in love with you? You have to be amazing."

Yuu hesitated, stirring her caramel colored coffee slowly with the small spoon given to her. "What makes you say that?"

"Ever since her last relationship, she's been... reserved. She used to smile so much more. Then, one day she just stopped. She told us that she had a bad breakup and at the time I'm ashamed to say that we weren't that accepting of the lifestyle yet." Jin took a slow drink as he thought back, a frown on his face. "We told her that she should find a man instead, and it turned into an argument... She didn't talk to us for a while." His voice got quieter, regret clear on his face. "But we overcame the hurdle, and although we had wanted her to get with someone of the opposite gender... I'm now overcome with joy seeing at what this has done for her. Yuu-chan, please treat my daughter right... I don't want to see that smile fade from her again."

Guilt was the first emotion Yuu felt at the statement. Although she managed to give a positive reply, she felt her heart ache in her chest from it. '_Our relationship is based on a bed of lies,_' her eyes gazed into her drink, focus leaving those around her. '_We've never even started dating, she never asked me out for real, and we've never even said we loved each other. This whole thing...Where does the line between real and make believe lay?_'

Another slow drink of her coffee finished off the cup and Jin took it from her to wash, much to her insistence that she could do it instead. Now that she was alone, she felt awkward sitting there on the stool by herself. Unfamiliar people were all around her, names of most she was struggling to remember. Everyone saw her as Sayaka's girlfriend, the one who pulled the girl back from a dark moment. Now, even more than ever, she felt the familiar suffocating of the emotion she struggled so hard to understand.

Sayaka made her way downstairs shortly after, waving to her family and moving over to Yuu to give the girl a hug. "Missed you," she whispered into her ear. "May want to keep your sleeve up a little bit, you have a strange purple mark on your neck." Although she was light and flirty, Yuu just tugged on her sleeve again and looked away from her. "Huh? Angel, you okay?"

"Don't call me that," Yuu's voice was barely heard. "I don't think I deserve such a word..." Sliding from the stool, she gave Sayaka a sad look and squeezed her hand in apology before moving to go back up the stairs.

Sayaka could only look on in shock, words hung in her mouth while watching her girlfriend walk away from her. '_Huh? What...?_' Although she wanted to give chase, her father called out to her, making the girl reluctantly join them. '_Maybe I pushed her too hard? She may need a moment to collect herself... But the way she looked at me seemed...sad?_'

The morning slowly passed, minutes turning into hours and soon the whole cabin was bustling with activity. Plans were being made, groups were heading out for the day, and soon Sayaka found herself before the closed door leading to her room. Hesitating, she felt the need to knock on it briefly before entering. No reply came, but when she entered into the room, she found Yuu already dressed in her skiing attire.

"Hey, am I late?" Yuu asked casually while brushing her hair in the mirror. "Sorry, got lost in my Switch." She pointed with her brush to the console that was on the bed. "Well, I'll go downstairs. See you in a bit." Walking by Sayaka, Yuu left the room before the girl could even say anything.

Stunned, the green eyed woman stood still for several moments before walking to the bed. Her fingers reached out to touch the portable system, finding it cool to the touch. Slowly she moved her hand to the shifted pillow and turned it over. Pressing her palm to it, she felt a warm, wet spot on the middle. "Yuu..."

Sayaka forced herself to change into her heavy clothes, grabbing their beanies and goggles on the way out. Yuu was already talking with the girl's cousins, smiling and laughing along with them. When she noticed Sayaka, she smiled and waved. "Sweetheart! Come on, we're ready to go!"

"Ah...Yeah... Okay?" Unsure she walked forward, getting Yuu clinging to her arm. "Is... everything good, uhm, Darling?"

"Of course! Come on, come on, I want to ski more!" Yuu pulled on her, getting the girl to follow her outside and to the van. Once seated inside, the shorter girl leaned forward in the seat so Sayaka's arm laid over the seat instead of her shoulders. Soon the van was filled and they were on their way. The ride was made in silence between them, Sayaka trying to give Yuu a little room while still attempting to give plenty of chances to talk about what was bothering her.

The ski lodge was full just like the day before, a mass of people moving in every direction. In silence the two picked up some skis and walked to the second ski lift to be taken to the intermediate course. "Darling, do you want to practice first?"

"I'm good." Yuu told her while waiting to board the bench to go up the rails. The two sat together, pulling the bar over themselves. "I bet this slope will be more fun for someone of your level, huh?"

"I'm more worried about you. This slope has some trees on it, so it can be dangerous."

"I'll be fine."

"You don't sound fine..."

"I'm fine, okay!?" Yuu looked at her before turning and looking away. "Sorry. Didn't mean to sound forceful there. Don't worry, I'll keep up a good show for your family."

"Show...?" Sayaka's voice almost broke, eyes widening at the word.

"That's all I'm good for, isn't it?" Yuu's voice softened, hurt laced in it. "Lieing to people. You're better off with someone else once this is over. I'm broken and will only drag you down."

"Stop saying that!" Sayaka growled at her. "Stop saying your broken, it hurts to hear it!"

"You don't even know what I mean by it!"

"Then tell me!" Sayaka's attempts to make Yuu talk failed when they arrived at the place to dismount. The two quickly lifted the bar and moved from the bench to get out of the way for the next people. Silence hung over them as they walked, skis being tossed in front of them to board. "Yuu, even if you're mad at me for some reason, don't be reckless okay?"

"I'm fine." Yuu felt her heart ache even more as she pulled the straps on her boots tighter. "I just..."

"Just...?" Sayaka helped the girl balance, trying her best to stay calm for her. "You told me last night to trust you. Let me."

Despite the words being kind, Yuu felt her chest tighten. '_What is a lie, and what's real?_' Her eyes looked up into Sayaka's before having to turn away in shame. "We're lieing to everyone." Her words were soft, pained. "I don't know what's real anymore. I feel like I'm... I don't know. After last night, I just..."

"Hey," Sayaka carefully put her hands onto the girl's shoulders. "It's clear something is bothering you, but I don't want to push you. Just... please be careful, okay? Do you need a moment for yourself? Should I just not press conversation for a little bit?"

'_She's so mature..._' Yuu felt the stab in her chest again when she remembered last night. '_We can't go like this... Not on lies._' Her face lifted to meet the girl's eyes. "Yeah. Let's spend some time apart."

The words clearly hurt the girl. Her body posture went more rigid, eyes widening a brief moment before softening. "Oh... You meant that... Okay. Meet up around noon?"

"Mmn." Yuu shifted so she could start going down the slope. "See you soon, Sayaka."

Sayaka watched the smaller girl leave, slipping down the snow to join the rest of the people enjoying themselves. "...I'll miss you." Her words went unheard, floating into the mist of crystallized breath to be carried by the wind.

'_This is stupid._' Yuu growled at herself while slipping down the slope. Her body was starting to move on it's own, keeping her balance while zigzagging her way along. '_I should just talk to her. But what do I even say?_' Avoiding a random person who was going slower than her, Yuu leaned into her decent to get a little more speed. '_Hey Sayaka honey? I know we almost had sex last night and everything, but hey, do you like me?_'

Coming to a stop at the base of the incline, Yuu clicked her skis off so she could carry them. '_Do I want her as my girlfriend? Do I love her? The feelings last night, were they love or was I just horny?_' Her cheeks were already pink from the bitter weather but she could feel them get a little less cold from the thought. '_So where do we start? We're already at third base after pretend dating for... a week? More? But then would that make us a month long now with our fake starting date? Ugh, I don't even know._'

Looking up at the sky, she noticed the sun was already directly overhead. '_No wonder I'm hungry... Maybe I'll call her and see if she wants to get a bite to eat and talk? I was rather mean to her this morning... And she even tried so hard to make sure I stayed safe._' As she walked to the lodge, Yuu noticed Sayaka sitting on one of the outside tables with her cousins. '_Are they... eating? Sayaka, you jerk, don't eat without your girlfriend!_'

Stopping in her tracks, Yuu was stunned at her own thoughts. '_I... guess that answers one question... but still, is she just getting swept up into the role we're playing? Even if this was love, what happens when we get back home? Once Touko is next to her again, will this just fade away?_' Yuu sighed, moving around to get into the lodge without being seen. '_What if... we're just two horny teens in the same room? And... She's just lost from being turned down..._'

A coffee was ordered along with a cherry filled pastry and soon Yuu sat down at a table by herself. Unzipping her heavy coat, she pulled out her phone to check it. To her surprise there were six messages at the top of her screen. With a flick of a finger, she brought down the list and immediately lost her appetite. Sayaka had sent her five different messages over the course of an hour asking if she wanted to meet up for lunch, and Touko had sent one asking how she was holding up.

'_I'm so horrible...'_ Yuu put her face into her palm and tapped on her phone to reply to Touko: **I'm a horrible girlfriend.**

After a minute or two, her phone buzzed at her with a reply. **Aren't we all at first?**

**I wish you were here. I need a hug.**

**I'm at your fingertips. Whatever happened, don't let it continue. Call me if you need me, but go make up with her ASAP.**

**Yes ma'am.**

**I love you.**

**I know.**

Yuu took a deep breath and pocketed her phone. '_Okay... Time to not be a wimp. She told me to trust her and I told her I would accept her. If she is still pretending with me, then I'll even accept that. From now on, this is going to be based on truth. I'm not going to run anymore._' Turning on the spot, Yuu walked over to where the group had been. They were thankfully still there, chatting lively while laughing. Once within earshot, Yuu called out to them. "Sayaka!"

Sayaka turned at once, gasping at the sight of Yuu before her. "Darling! Hey, I tried to contact you, but I don't think they went through."

"I was dumb and didn't check my phone, I'm sorry." The two awkwardly fidgeted before each other. "Uhm..." Yuu closed her eyes in worry. '_What do I even say!?_'

"Yuu-chan!" One of the males that Yuu remembered as Liam greeted her. "You're right on time. We're about to have a competition, and you can help judge."

Before Yuu could ask anything, Sayaka stood up so fast she made the other girl yelp in surprise. "Right! You know what, yes! I will!" Turning to face her cousin, Sayaka nodded to herself. "I will then!" Moving to her girlfriend, she smiled. "You just watch me. I'll make you realize how cool I am, and you won't be able to help but talk to me!" And with that statement, Sayaka jogged off with her skis.

"What... was that?" Yuu asked slowly as Liam stood with the other two people.

"Sayaka and I are going to hit that ramp there." Liam pointed at a ramp made of packed snow near the end of the slope. "We're both going to do a trick, and whoever loses has to do something the other one says. You, Taliesin, and Laura will determine who did the coolest thing. Best two out of three votes."

Confused, Yuu just nodded to confirm. Liam gave a two finger wave and ran off, leaving the three together. The group walked over to a place roped off for observation and waited together. "So," Laura began, brushing her long brown hair behind herself to get it out of the way. "This is the first time Sayaka had ever been taken in by Liam's taunting. You must be really special to her."

"I hope so," Yuu replied uneasily. "Do these two normally do this kind of thing?"

This time Taliesin, a tall man with short blue hair, replied. "Liam? Yeah. Constantly. Sayaka? I've never seen her try to show off before." Their eyes went to the ski lifts, trying to see if they could find them going up.

Sayaka looked forward with determination as she dismounted the ski lift. Liam was next to her, his wild black hair blowing in the wind. "I'm going to win this," she declared to him.

"You snowboard once every three years," Liam taunted back. "I basically live here." The two stepped onto their boards, boots locking into place. "I'll see you at the finish line, cousin!" Liam jumped on the spot, jarring his board to start to slide. Sayaka repeated the motion, flinging her purple, gold, and black board straight onto the path.

Speed was build easily, the two sliding past several people as they zipped down the slope. Her body leaned and shifted, keeping up with and overtaking Liam. The male grinned, changing his center of balance and moving to take the lead again. Before long the ramp was coming into view and Sayaka had no choice but to slow her pace to make it safe for them both to use it.

Liam hit the incline, body taking to the air and spinning around two times fully before landing smoothly to cheers from the miscellaneous people watching. Sayaka wasn't far behind, crouching down and setting her eyes firmly on her goal. Her body crouched, legs preparing to take to the air.

Weightlessness came to her as the sounds of her snowboard on the ground turned to silence and whistling wind. Her right hand reached back behind herself to grab onto the board as she turned her body to spin. '_Watch me, Yuu,_' She thought forcefully. '_I'll make you fall for me!_' Sayaka's body spun as she shifted her board to get more momentum. Three successful turns while holding onto her board came and she turned to finish it.

The girl was coming down to land much like a graceful swan descending onto a still and peaceful lake. Only the swan didn't know the lake was frozen over and hit the ice hard enough to topple over and slide across it while wildly flapping it's wings in distress. As such, Sayaka instantly crashed on the snow, board coming off her feet and body tumbling rapidly several times before she finally slid to a stop on her back.

Pain was the first thing she noticed as she tried to get up. A fiery stab on her ankle made her fall back onto the snow, panting in agony. Shortly she heard several people running over to her and her vision was covered by her cousins as well as a frantic Yuu looking like she was about to cry at a moment's notice. "Yeah," Sayaka spoke first, voice grunting. "That just happened."

"Are you okay!?" Yuu was scared to touch her, both hands up and moving as if she were debating hugging her and wondering if it would hurt her or not. "Please tell me you're okay!?"

"I think..." Sayaka let Liam help her sit up. "I think I hurt my ankle... ow..."

"Okay, I'll get you to the medical building, it's close." Liam knelt down fully, turning his back to her. "Get on." He felt the weight of his cousin lean onto his back with the help of the others. Once set, he grunted and stumbled a little before starting to walk to the log cabin near them that had a red cross on it. "Just your ankle?"

"Yeah..." Her single word was filled with pain. "And... I think I'm bruised pretty badly." The girl sighed to herself. '_Second day and I hurt myself. Good job, Sayaka._' Her green eyes found Yuu walking next to her, fear clear on the girl's face. "Hey, don't give me that look, I'll be fine." She smiled, knowing it wouldn't do much to calm the fears of her friend.

Inside the small doctor's area her ankle was quickly diagnosed as being sprained, much to the relief of everyone there. A brace was employed, along with a stern warning to stay off of it for a few days. Much to the girl's displeasure, a crutch was given to her to help her hop along without putting weight on it. '_How embarrassing..._' She whined to herself. '_Why did I ever think I could do something like that..._'

"I called your dad," Laura told them when they were dismissed back into the waiting room. "That didn't take long at all though."

Sayaka smiled lightly. "Seeing the same injuries every single day for who knows how long probably got them pretty well trained..." Straining, she used the crutch to move forward while Yuu still looked ready to hug her and cry at the same time.

Jin arrived not long after and embraced his daughter worriedly. A few scolding words later, he helped her into the van. Yuu followed at once, sitting next to her girlfriend and taking her hand. Sayaka felt immediately better, interlacing their fingers and enjoying the silence on the way back. Confusion was clear when they pulled back up to the cabin, the people who stayed there gasping when Sayaka emerged on her crutch.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she told them all, waving it off. "Just a little sprain!" Still, she found helpful words of encouragement and support while she limped to the stairs and made her way up them with Yuu's help. A moment later and they found themselves back into their bedroom and alone once more. The two looked at each other awkwardly a moment before Sayaka finally spoke. "Want to talk a bit? Get this off our chests?" Hobbling across the room, she made her way to their dresser.

"...Yeah." Yuu looked down, ashamed at herself. "I'm sorry... I was so absorbed in myself that I made you get hurt."

"It was my fault, not yours. I'm honestly not amazing at snowboarding, but I still wanted to show off... I'm really embarrassed more than anything." Yuu was about to say something else, but closed her mouth instead. "I'm okay, really. It hurts, but I'll be just fine... Though... I do need a small favor?" Her leg stuck out, showing the brace over her socked foot. "I'm going to need a little help getting undressed first, if I may ask that of you? It's okay to say no, I can figure it out."

"I'll help you." Yuu stepped forward, unzipping the jacket and slowly wiggling the sleeve to make it come off. Every wince from the girl stung her heart deeply, making her whimper out anxiously instead of the one actually hurt. The second layer of clothing came next, leaving her in a simple long sleeved tee. Then an embarrassing moment of pulling down pants came, paired with helping her into some simple sweats to wear that wouldn't interfere with her brace.

"Thanks... now you. Get comfortable, I want to really talk this out, okay?" Hopping to the bed, she climbed up onto it and sat with her back to the headboard with her pillow bracing her. Yuu joined moments later, jumping up to get on the mattress. She was now in her lounging clothes as well, moving to sit in front of her friend. "Sit beside me please." Sayaka patted the bed with her hand and soon Yuu plopped down. With one motion Sayaka reached over, took the girl's shoulder in her hand, and pulled her down so she was laying on her lap. "There. Much better. Now you can't run off."

"...I wasn't going to run off." Yuu complained, shifting but not protesting the action. "Not exactly how I expected this to happen..."

"Yuu." The word started the beginning of their heart to heart with each other. "Please tell me what happened to make you feel like you do?"

Closing her eyes, the now familiar sense of guilt bubbled in her throat. "Your dad asked me about us this morning. He told me that you have been sad since your last breakup, and that he was really happy that it was me who you fell in love with... That he was happy to see being with a girl was working for you." To her surprise, gentle fingers stroked through her hair. The easing motion made her soften, sinking down onto the girl more. "I felt so ashamed that everything we are based on is just some... lie we made together to get them to stop trying to set you up with people."

The petting stopped for a few seconds before picking back up again. "So you felt bad for lying to everyone?" A small nod answered her. "It's true though, isn't it? We never fell in love. I didn't ask you to be my girlfriend, and we certainly don't have a relationship with weeks of experience." Sayaka leaned back onto her pillow and continued to stroke the girl in her lap. "But I don't think that means everything we are is a lie."

"What do you mean?" Yuu spoke softly, not moving to look at her. The girl's eyes were fixated across the room, half closed from the fingertips running through her hair.

"...It was fast. I don't know if it's because I'm on a rebound from Touko or not, but having you as my girlfriend has made me really happy. Sometime along the way, I forgot that we were pretending... And I liked that." Yuu didn't answer her so the girl continued gently. "You really did save me, Angel." Softly she used a finger to turn Yuu's chin so she was forced to lay on her back and look up at her. "I meant every word I said to you."

Yuu's mouth opened to reply, but closed again after a failed attempt. Moments passed before she could try once more. "When?"

"I think it started when we hugged. When you told me you wouldn't leave me. Those words are more important to me than a declaration of love... When my ex broke up with me, she... told me it was just a fun thing for her to mess with, that she didn't actually like girls. We needed to grow up and move on like real women, dating men. I met her again about a month or two ago and she apologized to me... Not for what she did, but if it scarred me and made me still like girls... Like some kind of mental illness."

Smiling, Sayaka touched Yuu's nose with a fingertip. "I felt so betrayed, so... used. Later, when I confessed to Touko, she told me she couldn't return my feelings. And now, here we are. You and me, sitting on a bed together. You didn't tell me you loved me. You didn't say pretty words of beauty and special meanings to me. You looked at me, when I was bearing my soul to you, and said the words I wanted to hear most. At first I hated it, that you, the girl I treated so poorly, the one that was closer to Touko than I was in such a short amount of time... was the one who made me feel wanted."

Sayaka's hand moved around to caress Yuu's cheek now, thumb rubbing along her soft skin. "I instantly clung to you, and you accepted it. I kissed you, and you let me. All of my anguish, sadness, frustration, you took it all in my kiss. Even though I was overbearing to you, you accepted it. You stayed with me, slept with me, and was by my side all day. You made me want you so badly, made me feel alive and desired again. Last night, I couldn't stand it anymore. I wanted you. Fully. I wanted you to really be mine. I wanted to push this into a real relationship... Last night, I fell in love with you."

Yuu felt tears coming, and despite trying to force them down, they began to roll down her cheeks partway into Sayaka's confession. A small gasp came and she rolled over again, face pushing into the girl's stomach. Her back was stroked lovingly, easing her to let out her emotions before trying to reply. "Growing up..." Yuu finally began, tears still slowly dripping along her nose and cheek. "I never understood what love was. I just couldn't feel it. I was confessed to, and sought after, but I never felt anything. My first kiss was indifferent to me. I didn't even care, I was just... numb. When you kissed me, I felt different though. It wasn't love, but it felt... empowering?"

One hand moved to wipe her eyes, Yuu sniffing a bit while trying to keep talking. "I felt special... wanted. Needed. It didn't make me flutter on wings, but instead made me feel strong and dependable. Like... 'This girl needs me' you know? I wanted to stay with you, to explore it. But then, when we started getting physical... I wanted more. I wanted things I can't describe, things I don't even know what are... But the one thing I knew was that I wanted you to feel special. I wanted you to know you were needed."

Taking a deep breath, Yuu looked up at Sayaka again. "I thought I was broken because I didn't feel the love like everyone described to me. But now I realize that my love is different... It isn't myself flying on wings, it's me embracing someone and feeling that deep connection with them. It's the desire to be with them, to stay with them, to explore with them... My love is personal... passionate." Reaching up, she also placed her hand onto Sayaka's cheek. "That's why... Last night, I fell in love with you too."

Sayaka was sniffing, trying to make herself not tear up. "And that's why you hated it so much when you thought it was all fake."

"Yeah..."

"Yuu." Leaning over, Sayaka hugged the girl to her stomach. "I know I'm not the best choice, but I do know I can love you more than anyone else can...I want to make you happy. Will you be my girlfriend, Angel?"

Yuu felt her heart skip a beat, the protective desire building up once more. "Yes... Oh gosh yes." The tears came again and she tried desperately to wipe them away before getting Sayaka's shirt even more wet than it was. "Everyone said this would be happy and light hearted... and here we are, crying over each other." She still smiled, slowly sitting up so she could embrace the girl. "I love you, my Sweetheart."

"And I you, my Angel." The two held each other close and shared their first kiss as official girlfriends.


	5. Chapter 5

There was something special about waking up on a day where you had no plans. Thanks to my rash decisions yesterday, my ankle was not really in the best condition to be walking on. Instead, we had decided to just hang around today. Maybe go out eventually, but for now there wasn't anything pulling us to move from our warm bed. Yuu was still against me, but now I was on my back with her snuggled up against my side and under my arm. I could feel her body heat seeping through our clothes, despite how cool she normally was. Looking over at her I couldn't help but smile. Her short hair was a mess over my shoulder and every now and then her fingers would twitch as if she were doing something in her dream. It was absolutely adorable, and I really wish I could take a picture of it.

**Pretend for Me V**

**By: Satashi**

Yuu stirred as she started to come back from the land of dreams. Golden eyes lazily opened and after a small moment of realization, she smiled softly. "Hey there..."

"Good morning," Sayaka whispered down to her, leaning so their noses touched in a little kiss. "I'm really going to miss waking up to you every morning... Want to move in with me?"

Yuu giggles softly, trying to imagine it. "My mom would have an absolute fit. But hey, now that I think about it, your parents are really lax when it comes to this kind of thing aren't they? I mean, it wasn't even a question that we would share a room together or a bed for that matter."

"Well, you won't exactly get me pregnant," Sayaka teased her smoothly. "But aside from that, I think my parents trust my judgment. They know I won't let anyone do anything to me I don't want."

"What about me?" Yuu playfully glared at her. "You came onto me full force... more than once."

Looking away with a small blush, Sayaka tried to hide the pride in her voice. "I did no such thing."

"Yeah right." Yuu shifted so she could sit up and stretch out. "What are we doing today?"

Sayaka put her arms around the girl's waist and pulled her back down. "Staying in bed and snuggling." She got the expected groan of half annoyance. "Just for a little bit? Please? I was good all day yesterday."

"Well... I mean you were." A blush started to creep up her body as Sayaka rolled over on top of her. "You're going to hurt your ankle..."

"I'll live..." Her lips moved to kiss Yuu's, finding them to be reluctant but accepting. After parting, their eyes opened and the two smiled at each other fondly. "You're pretty."

"Flattery won't work," Yuu cooed back at her. "I need to brush me teeth still, and-" Again she was cut off by a kiss, feeling the smile on her girlfriend's face. "You're so needy."

"Yes," Sayaka agreed easily, pecking the lips again and again. "We only have one more day together alone. Tomorrow we're going to be flying back and then saying goodbye..."

Yuu tilted her head when Sayaka started to leave a small trail of kisses along it. "That doesn't mean we have to..."

With great effort, Sayaka stopped her trail to talk against Yuu's shoulder. "It doesn't, I just want to...But you're not really in the mood are you?"

"...Sorry." Yuu still wrapped her arms around the girl on her. "I just need the feelings to be right... Last time I was swept up in a whirlwind of emotions and everything felt amazing... Sorry, I think I'll be a little annoying in that regard..."

"So just when it's right?" Sayaka whispered the rest softly, moving to look down at her. "Okay, I understand. Just wait, I'm going to make you melt today." Her hands slowly moved up Yuu's shirt, palming the girl's sides until looping under her to hold her close. Their noses touched, deep green eyes gazing down into shaking gold ones. "And then..." Sayaka whispered out before gently licking Yuu's lips. "You'll be the one begging." With that, Sayaka shifted, their bodies sliding over each others. Her warmth left Yuu as she moved to the edge of the bed and got her crutch ready. "I'll shower first since it'll take me a while. See you soon."

Yuu laid on the bed, wide eyed, looking up at the ceiling. As the water turned on, she finally managed to start catching her breath and calm her heart beat. Then, slowly, she covered her face with both hands to hide the blazing blush on her cheeks. '_...I don't think I'll be able to make it until nightfall... oh my god she's so cool.'_

Sitting up on the bed, the girl reached to the nightstand to grab her Switch and turn it on. Three taps later and she was back into her game. A small Eevee appeared by her avatar and she smiled at it. "Whelp, Eevee, looks like it's just you and me for a bit." Her eyes scanned the menus before going wide. "Wait a second... There's a trainer nearby!" Her map was brought up and she zoomed in on it. Sure enough on the display of the world, there was a small blip on her screen. "They're... close."

Quickly hopping off the bed, Yuu rooted through her suitcase to grab what little clean clothes she had left. Then, jogging out the door and down the stairs, she looked at her screen again. Most people were already gone by now, leaving only the preteens too young to ski safely and a few of the older generation who preferred to catch up with their families and talk. As she walked, she glanced up and down to hone in on the radar. The back balcony door was opened and she stepped out, suddenly glad she decided on her thicker socks.

"There!" A voice came up. Yuu turned to see one of Sayaka's cousins. The young boy was almost to his teenage years, wearing a messed up baseball cap, a sweater, and shorts despite the cold. "I knew I saw a trainer! Prepare for battle!" He even had a few of his brothers with him, who cheered along.

Yuu grinned at the boy. "Heh. I hope you're prepared. I'll beat those shorts right off you!"

The boy narrowed his eyes. "I like shorts... They're comfy and easy to wear!"

Sayaka left the bedroom to the sounds of cheering and laughter. The railing upstairs looked over the living room and she leaned on it curiously, a smile coming to her face as she watched Yuu play with her nieces and nephews. They were piling on her, tickling her and saying something about Yuu being some kind of really awesome master of something. It wasn't until Yuu was finally pinned and admitted defeat did she call down to the group. "Hey, don't play too rough with Yuu, okay? She's tiny!"

"I am not!" Yuu protested, shooting a pouting glare up at Sayaka. "You're just...Really... well proportioned and..." Cheeks coloring, she looked away in embarrassment. "That didn't go the way I planned..." At once the kids began to tease her for her cheeks darkening, and before long she had to break herself free of their laughing so she could meet up with her girlfriend. "Hey, sorry, I didn't think I'd be gone so long." She accepted the quick smooch, much to the dismay of grossed out kids behind her.

"No worries, did you have fun?" Sayaka hopped along with her to the living room area so they could sit on the couch together

"Yeah. We traded a bit and I added them to my friends list so we could play later. Also got to talk with Gran-gran and recommend some books to everyone. Though to be honest, I feel more like I was being interviewed by them."

"They ask a lot?" Sayaka let Yuu help her sit and promptly put her arm around her. Her crutch was sat next to them and she leaned back contently.

"Standard marriage questions," Yuu revealed with a laugh. "But that aside, what are we going to do today? On our last day here?"

Sayaka sighed and let her head lean over onto Yuu's for comfort. "I was going to take you ice skating, originally." Looking down at her foot, she mentally cursed her bad luck. "I suppose I can just watch you fall of your butt."

"I'll pass," Yuu waved the idea off. "It wouldn't be near as fun without you there to pull down with me." A small, comfortable silence came over them. The television was on, playing an old Christmas movie that took just enough of their attention to make it seem like they weren't just enjoying each other's company.

"I'm really going to miss this..." Sayaka whispered softly as the credits began to roll.

"Which part?"

"Touching someone." Her words were soft so no one else could hear them. "Being alone for a while, being rejected, and then suddenly spending five days with someone I never expected to fall in love with... It's going to really hurt to sleep alone again."

"I kind of feel the same way." Yuu replied easily, leaning into the girl more. "I didn't even really know what love was until we came here and went through this... It was supposed to be just helping out a friend, you know? Now I get to go home and tell my sister I'm dating a girl."

"How will your family take it?" Sayaka asked curiously. "Mine wasn't that great, but they came around. I hope you don't have to go through that."

"Hmmm..." Yuu thought about it while half heartedly watching the screen as a new movie began to play. "Rei-chan, my sister, will be excited for me. Dad is kind of laid back, so I think it'll be fine... My mother though... I think that'll be an issue. Hey... would you mind if I don't tell them we're dating?"

"Oh? I mean, it's okay-"

"Not like that," Yuu shook her head. "I mean... if they know we're dating they might not let me have sleep overs and stuff with you. But if you're just a friend, then she won't think twice when I tell her you're coming over..."

"...Naughty girl."

Yuu looked away, face red. "Fine then, I'll just tell her so she won't let you get close to me."

"No, no, I'm sorry!" Sayaka quickly countered the idea. "Let's keep it to ourselves for the moment." She got a giggle. "Geeze... I just said this is going to be really hard on me." The two shared a small giggle together.

The day slowly passed for the two, mainly talking to the random family members who were around. Despite not going out for the day, the girls found themselves entertained by just each other. Random questions about what the other liked, gentle prying into special moments, and random kisses when they thought no one was looking at them. Before long more and more of the extended family began to get back and after a very pleasing dinner, the two finally decided to go back upstairs.

Back in their room, the two looked at each other a little awkwardly. "Uhm, hey," Sayaka limped her way over to the balcony door and turned back with a gentle smile. "The sun is setting, want to watch it?"

"Yeah!" Yuu joined her shortly after and leaned on the railing. Warm soon enveloped her back as Sayaka hugged her from behind. Arms snaked around her waist and soon a cheek rubbed up against hers. "There's the clingy girl." Yuu teased her with a smile.

"I held myself back all day," She returned coyly. "I think that deserves some praise."

"Good girl." Yuu reached up and back to pat her girlfriend's head. "Even though we literally spent the entire day in each other's arms."

"Yeah, but who's keeping record?" Sayaka nosed against the girl. "You smell good."

"I smell like you do," Yuu mused while the wind blew around them. The sun was already casting a crimson hue across the cloudy sky and making the mountains look as if they were ablaze. "This is so pretty..."

Sayaka smiled gently at Yuu, watching her eyes sparkle with the light on them. "Really is..."

"Eh?" Golden eyes glanced to the side, quickly gathering what was said. "Sa-sayaka... Don't do that, it's embarrassing." Despite her words, her body still leaned a little closer.

"So I shouldn't kiss you either?" Her words turned to a crystal fog as they were spoken and danced over Yuu's cheek as they went. The two faced each other, heads tilting to bring their lips together in the dying sunlight. The sky was quickly turning from the mix of subtle hues to a more neutral blackish blue with dots of stars. Kiss after kiss came before a shiver finally made them part. Snow was starting to drift around them, picking up as the minutes passed. "Inside?"

Yuu nodded, helping Sayaka get her crutch so she could go back in. As they entered, Sayaka moved her hand to the light switch and slid across it, making all the lights dim to a dull yellow. The next pass across the room brought the fireplace to life and soon she sat on the thick rug before it with one hand extended to Yuu. "Join me." It was a statement and a question at the same time, spoken with a soft tone.

The younger girl slowly sank to her knees before Sayaka, watching her girlfriend reach to the coffee table by them to pick up a box. "What's that?"

"I asked Liam to bring it back for me and set it here. It's a box of chocolates." Sayaka opened the flip up lid to reveal a few pieces of candy in a velvet box. "These are specially made in this town, by amazing chefs. You can't buy much at a time because it takes so long to make them... They're also called Lover's chocolates."

"Sayaka..." Yuu instantly felt a little guilt in her stomach. "These probably cost more than a whole box by themselves... You didn't have to-"

"Angel." That special pet name reserved for when they were alone. It made Yuu stop her sentence and allowed Sayaka to smile at her lovingly. "I've always been scared of my friends finding out how much my family had. I went to a private school with other girls to avoid being excluded and called a snob...When I swapped to our school, I did everything I could to hide it in fear of false friends being around me... You're one of the first people I ever trusted to share something expensive with... So please let me do this."

Yuu only smiled, giving that look that both of her upperclassmen knew so very well. "Oh fine..." She allowed one of the chocolates to be unwrapped and watched it be placed on Sayaka's lips. As they leaned forward to kiss, she accepted half the treat. Her body twitched lightly when the candy broke, a sudden caramel flavor spreading into their mouths. Sayaka's hands went to her shoulders to keep Yuu from pulling back. Instead, she carefully guided the girl down onto the thick fluffy rug and moved to straddle her waist.

As they parted, Yuu looked up at her girlfriend above her. Green eyes were gazing into her golden ones, light brown hair cascading like water over her shoulders. Yuu could see the flames of the fireplace dancing light over them, shadows flickering on the walls. Snow was fluttering around their cabin and the sounds of wind blowing added an ambiance to the already amazing mood. "Sayaka... Sweetheart."

"My Angel..." The two slowly closed their eyes, lips pressing together. Hands sought out each other, bodies moving to push together. "I love you..."

Yuu awoke first on the last morning, immediately snuggling back deeper into the covers and against the body holding her. The two were pressed close, legs intertwined. Her shorter body made her nose rest against Sayaka's collarbone and she felt the girl's chin on her head. An arm moved over her hips, palm moving to gently caress her back. "I wanted to watch you sleep," Yuu whispered softly, disappointed that her movement made her lover wake up.

"You'll have many opportunities in the future, Angel." Sayaka smiled contently, hand moving up more to caress the silky hair of Yuu. A moment went between them before she heard a soft half giggle under her.

"We really..." Yuu was smiling, face looking like she had just been given the world. "Oh wow... Hehehe!"

Not being able to help herself, Sayaka laughed as well. "Uhm, you're welcome?" The girls looked at each other, cheeks a soft pink and silly grins on their faces. "Now I'm _really_ not going to want to let you go"

"We have hours," Yuu reminded her, rolling over so she was on top of the girl. Her hand moved to trace the many hickies along Sayaka's body. She had discovered last night that she _thoroughly_ enjoyed biting, and it showed. "Did I hurt you any?"

"Plenty," Sayaka teased. "I do recall asking for more, though." Her flirt worked and Yuu lost the confidence she had managed to get. However, after a small stumble, Yuu slid down under the covers.

"You still have chocolate on you." Yuu's voice floated up as her tongue started to trace down the girl's stomach.

"Y-yuu!" To her dismay, her girlfriend stopped way to soon. Her head titled to look under the covers to see a grinning girl, clearly caught in the middle of teasing. "When my ankle is better, I'm going to get you good," she promised.

"Oooh, please." Yuu countered with a bright smile. "Lots of hugging involved?"

"Lots," Sayaka accepted the sudden snuggle and held Yuu tightly. "I hate to say this, but we need to get clean and start getting ready to head out... I won't be much help with my ankle, sorry."

Yuu shook her head. "No, it's okay... Say, if we hurry, do you think we'll have time to use that jet tub?"

"Of course," Sayaka replied sweetly. "Come on, let's wash each other and get in before others start getting up and about."

"So... This is it." Sayaka stated simply when Yuu's train was about to get to the station. "Thank you again for this. I don't really know how to repay you for it."

"You're doing a great job being my girlfriend," Yuu answered simply. "Let's keep figuring this out together..."

"Yeah."

"Uhm," Yuu chuckled nervously. "Is it acceptable to kiss in a train station?"

"Absolutely not," Sayaka replied at once. Stepping forward, she used a finger to lift Yuu's chin and claimed her lips for herself. The sounds of a train coming to a stop made them slowly part and smile at each other. "See you, my Angel."

"Till then, Honey." Yuu took a step back, shouldered her bag, and trotted off to the train. Once safely aboard, she turned and waved. "I love you!"

Sayaka blushed hard, the doors closing on the train and the noise picking up again. Yuu vanished quickly as the train moved and she gave a hard sigh. '_Well... Time to go home._' Sayaka turned and lifted her suitcase, smiling as she walked from the train tracks with her head held high.

~*Epilogue*~

Yuu rolled over in her bed, frustration clear on her face. Her eyes were heavy, mind fogged. No matter what she tried, she couldn't seem to find comfort in the night. The sky was cloudy, making it extra dark for her, the small space heater in her room was keeping her warm despite her bed being by the window, and she was finally at home in her own bed again. Despite this, it just didn't feel right. Something was off. That something came in the form of her phone buzzing at her and lighting her bedroom with a dim light from her screen. Sayaka's name appeared next to the message icon and Yuu smiled softly at it. **Are you awake?**

**Yeah, I can't sleep.** Yuu types back and instantly saw the read icon.

**Me either. I think I need something for it.**

**What's that?**

Yuu watched her phone for a moment more before a new message came up. It had a small speaker icon on it with a few second duration. Curiously, she tapped the message and heard Sayaka's voice float through her phone from the recording. "Sweet dreams, Angel. I love you too."

Yuu's heart skipped, a gentle feeling following it. Her body sank into the mattress, eyes suddenly feeling even heavier than before as sleep crept up onto her. Before it overtook her, she touched the recording button and spoke softly into the night. "Sweet dreams, Darling. I miss you." The read message appeared and they both sent a simple sleeping emoji. Yuu turned off her phone and shifted one of her pillows to be against the wall. Pressing her back up against it, she felt a comforting feeling of weight and warmth behind her. Only a few moments later and her breathing evened out, sleep overcoming her tired body.


End file.
